Southeast Asia: AFD Group increases its presence in the region with Expertise France

The Indo-Pacific region is one of the priority areas for French development aid and cooperation and is pivotal with regard to the Sustainable Development Goals. The purpose of Mr. Pellet's visit is to support the activities carried out by Expertise France in South-East Asia in the fields of maritime safety, disaster risk reduction, and the transition to a green economy that prioritises the reduction of plastic waste.

This visit represents an important opportunity for high-level institutional and operational meetings. The conclusions of these exchanges will strengthen the commitment of Expertise France and AFD Group alongside public partners in Southeast Asia who are mobilized in a shared commitment to sustainable development goals.

A long-standing presence in the region, in line with French priorities

In South-East Asia, Expertise France has a long-established presence in Vietnam, where it has a regional office. The agency implements a large number of multi-country projects, particularly in the fields of health as part of the Initiative, sustainable development, and responding to global threats. 24 international technical experts (ITE) are also deployed on behalf of French ministries.

In Thailand, Expertise France works more specifically alongside partner institutions on projects contributing to the fight against major pandemics, the strengthening of regional security, supporting the digital transition, and increasing cooperation with regional and international organisations.

In the Philippines, Expertise France is making a significant contribution to the country's sustainable development and economic growth in a number of key sectors, including health, education, economic development, and governance. Through specific projects, Expertise France works closely with local partners to build capacity, promote innovation, and foster sustainable policies and practices.

Finally, France-ASEAN relations led to the launch on Monday, November 20th in Jakarta of a regional programme to improve air quality.
Funded by AFD, it aims to raise awareness, improve monitoring, build local capacities, and provide guidelines adapted to the ASEAN context.

Maritime safety, a crucial issue in South-East Asia

In line with the strategic priorities defined by France, Expertise France is increasingly expanding its activities in the region. The ESIWA project, for example, launched in 2020 and implemented with GIZ, is helping to strengthen cooperation between the EU and its Asian partner countries on issues such as cybersecurity, crisis management, and the fight against terrorism. ESIWA also contributes to the recognition of the EU as a global security actor.

Expertise France is also implementing the European CRIMARIO project, which aims to reduce maritime risks and secure shipping routes by strengthening information exchange. This project has seen its activities extended from the Indian Ocean to the Pacific Ocean.

As part of the project, two events are taking place this week: the third conference on SHARE.IT, the interoperability framework that links existing systems, helping to improve information sharing and maritime situational awareness, as well as collaboration and cooperation. IORIS training will also be delivered for the first time in Thailand.

IORIS is an information-sharing platform, developed by CRIMARIO, which enables coordination and communications via an encrypted and secure online environment. Its main function is to provide maritime centres, organisations and agencies with a way to analyse, plan and coordinate maritime operations.

Philippines: Expertise France strengthens its presence with two new projects

With two new projects currently being developed in the Philippines, Expertise France is strengthening AFD Group's presence in the country.

AFD has granted a 250 million euro loan to the Philippines to strengthen disaster risk reduction at the local authority level, with the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) in charge of the project. Expertise France will provide technical assistance to support the DILG.

Finally, a green economy programme in the Philippines financed by the European Union is due to be signed at the end of the year. It will aim to support the Philippines' transition to a circular economy, prioritising waste reduction as a fundamental aspect of the country's sustainable development efforts.