SHANGHAI, June 6, 2024 – The ASEAN+3 Macroeconomic Research Office (AMRO) and the Asia-Pacific Finance and Development Institute (AFDI) today signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to strengthen collaboration on areas of common interest toward ensuring the macroeconomic and financial resilience and stability of the ASEAN+3 region.
The MOU takes immediate effect and will cover a three-year period from 2024 to 2027. Under the MOU, both institutions agree to collaborate in joint research, capacity building, joint seminars and workshops, and staff exchanges; with a focus on salient issues, including population aging, climate change, and financial digitalization.
AMRO Director Kouqing Li and AFDI President Wenbin Lu signed the MOU on the occasion of the ASEAN+3 Finance Think-Tank Network Seminar in Shanghai, China.
“AMRO and AFDI share a common purpose of supporting economic development and promoting financial stability in the ASEAN+3 region. Amid heightened global uncertainty, both our institutions pledge to join forces and deepen our knowledge of key structural and thematic issues affecting our region with the signing of the MOU,” said Mr. Li.
“The MOU marks an important step in strengthening our collaboration with AMRO, we look forward to working with AMRO more closely to promote regional capacity building and knowledge sharing in the field of finance and development,” said Mr. Lu.
AMRO is an international organization comprising 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam) and China; Hong Kong, China; Japan; and Korea. AMRO’s mandate is to conduct macroeconomic surveillance, support regional financial arrangements, and provide technical assistance to the members. In addition, AMRO also serves as a regional knowledge hub and provides support to ASEAN+3 financial cooperation.
The AFDI is a research and capacity-building institution in finance and development issues among Asia and the Pacific member economies. AFDI conducts training, research, and forums on regional finance and development issues for developing economies in the Asia and Pacific region. Originating from the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Finance and Development Program initiated by the Chinese government in 2001, AFDI was formally established in 2014 to meet growing regional demands for knowledge cooperation and capacity building under the APEC framework.