On 18-19 July 2013, Thailand will host an EAS (East Asia Summit) Regulatory Roundtable and a Workshop on “Enhancing Connectivity through Multi-layered Regional Frameworks: The Role of Dialogue Partners” at the Dusit Thani Hotel, Bangkok.

The Roundtable on 18 July 2013 will be jointly co-hosted by Thailand and New Zealand. The main objective is to concretize the EAS Declaration on ASEAN Connectivity, adopted by the EAS Leaders at the 6th EAS in November 2011 in Bali, Indonesia, by launching a dialogue on regulatory issues among EAS participants from 18 countries. The Roundtable will complement and build upon existing ASEAN discussions on the subject.

The programme of the Roundtable will consist of four main topics: (1) the role of regulation in regional connectivity; (2) regulatory management systems; (3) regulatory cooperation; and (4) the way forward.

The Workshop on 19 July 2013 aims to review the role of ASEAN’s dialogue partners in promoting connectivity under the various regional frameworks, explore possible ways on how to enhance their involvement and contributions, and come up with policy recommendations on addressing obstacles in enhancing regional connectivity.

The Workshop will be divided into three sessions: (1) On-going efforts on connectivity under the various regional frameworks; (2) The roles of dialogue partners in promoting connectivity, and (3) future directions.  Invited speakers include experts and academics from ASEAN member states and dialogue partners as well as representatives of regional and international organizations, including the ASEAN Secretariat (ASEC), Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA), Asian Development Bank (ADB), ASEAN University Network (AUN), and Mekong Institute (MI).

The Roundtable and Workshop are part of a series to follow up on the successful Workshops on “Cross-border Management: A Key to Efficient ASEAN Connectivity” and “ASEAN+3 Partnership on Connectivity” held 13-14 and 15 June last year in Bangkok.

Interested participants may register using a document as attached below: