The Clingendael Academy celebrated the successful completion of the first online edition of a diplomatic training programme tailored for ASEAN diplomats and officials. Nine diplomats and officials from the ASEAN member states and the ASEAN Secretariat participated in an intensive two-week programme. The training aimed to foster the bilateral relations between the Netherlands, the ASEAN member states, and the ASEAN Secretariat.

The training kicked off with an assignment in which the participants explored opportunities for regional cooperation in times of Covid-19. This exercise served the purpose of exchanging viewpoints on enhancing regional cooperation within ASEAN by discussing national priorities, opportunities, and challenges when tackling the pandemic. This tailor-made programme also combined in-depth sessions on key topics such as regional security, digital connectivity, EU policy, and institutions with interactive and innovative online learning methods. The participants honed their skills in intercultural communication, economic diplomacy, scenario building, and negotiation techniques to ground the knowledge gained into practice.

Participants worked on enhancing these key professional skills and deepened their knowledge on matters central to ASEAN while expanding their networks with ASEAN colleagues and Dutch counterparts. We look back on a successful training in which participants and experts exchanged views and learned from each other’s experiences and insights.