The 8th ASEAN+Japan Senior Officials' Meeting on Sports

The 8th SOMS+Japan Conference was held on the morning of October 15 in Hanoi. — The 8th SOMS+Japan Conference was held on the morning of October 15 in Hanoi .

The conference was co-chaired by Mr. Nguyen Hong Minh, Deputy Director of the Vietnam Sports Administration, and Ms. Keiko Momii, Director General of the Japan Sports Agency. The event attracted the participation of representatives of the ASEAN Secretariat, regional sports organizations, and many Japanese universities and research institutes.

Mr. Nguyen Hong Minh and Ms. Keiko Momii co-chaired the SOMS + Japan conference.

Strengthening substantive cooperation towards sustainable development

In recent years, cooperation programs between ASEAN and Japan have been implemented regularly and brought about practical results. The focus of cooperation is on areas such as sports for people with disabilities, promoting gender equality in sports, physical education , and developing professional coaching capacity. These activities not only strengthen the foundation of cooperation but also contribute to realizing sustainable development goals in the region.

Speaking at the conference, Mr. Nguyen Hong Minh emphasized: The theme of the 16th ASEAN Senior Sports Officials Meeting - "Orientation of sports, contributing to sustainable development" - is completely consistent with Japan's cooperation goals. Vietnam commits to actively participating in cooperation programs within the ASEAN-Japan framework to promote exchanges, experience sharing and regional sports development.

On the Japanese side, Ms. Keiko Momii expressed her pleasure at co-chairing the conference, emphasizing the significance of this year's event as it concludes the ASEAN Work Plan on Sports 2021-2025 and opens a new phase of cooperation. Japan pledged to continue supporting ASEAN initiatives in priority areas including Physical Education, Gender Equality, Para Sports, Anti-Doping and Sports Management, in line with the Chiang Mai Declaration 2023.

Strengthening cooperation focus and evaluating implementation results

Mr. Saw Lwin, Deputy Secretary General of ASEAN, spoke at the conference.

Reporting at the conference, Mr. Saw Lwin, Deputy Secretary General of ASEAN, summarized the results of the implementation of activities within the framework of the 7th SOMS + Japan (held in Vinh Phuc in 2024). According to him, sports cooperation between ASEAN and Japan is implemented based on four main pillars: Developing a team of teachers and sports coaches; Increasing the participation of women in sports; Promoting sports for people with disabilities; Improving anti-doping capacity.

At the conference, representatives from Seijo University (Japan) shared the results of the Gender Equality Promotion Project, aiming to increase opportunities for women in sports in ASEAN countries, while Nippon Sports Science University presented a report on physical education and sports for people with disabilities with many specific figures and examples from each country.

Towards the 2030 cooperation strategy

In the new ASEAN-Japan Cooperation Strategy, the two sides agreed on five strategic cooperation goals until 2030, including: Expanding cooperation in training and research in physical education; Promoting gender equality and enhancing the role of women in sports; Developing sports for people with disabilities and social inclusion; Building an honest, transparent, and doping-free sports system; Developing governance, business and innovation capacity in modern sports.

The ASEAN Secretariat said that the sports work plan for the 2026-2030 period is being developed to ensure it is consistent with the ASEAN Community Vision 2045 and the region's sustainable development goals.

The meeting also acknowledged the outcomes of the 40th ASEAN-Japan Forum (Nagano, March 2025) and the 27th ASEAN-Japan Summit (Vientiane, October 2024), where the two sides reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening the comprehensive strategic partnership, aiming for equal and mutually beneficial cooperation, while promoting people-to-people exchanges, cultural-educational exchanges and sports science research.

In addition, the meeting reviewed preparations for the 5th ASEAN+Japan Ministerial Meeting on Sports (AMMS+Japan), scheduled to take place on October 17, where the parties will adopt a Joint Statement and Provisional Agenda.

Delegates appreciated Vietnam's coordinating role in technical activities and welcomed Japan's active participation in initiatives such as "Sport for Tomorrow", "ASEAN Football4SDGs Forum" and many other programs, contributing to promoting community-based sports and sustainable development in the region.

Minh Giang

Source: https://nhandan.vn/hoi-nghi-quan-chuc-cap-cao-aseannhat-ban-ve-the-thao-lan-thu-8-post915532.html