"This meeting demonstrates ASEAN's collective commitment to intensifying trade cooperation in Southeast Asia," said Anita Iskandar, Director of International Customs Cooperation at Indonesian Finance Ministry, in a statement released on Thursday.
As the 2023 chair of ASEAN, Indonesia hosted the meeting in Jakarta on September 11-13 following the country's success in hosting the 43rd summit of the regional bloc in the capital city on September 5-7.
The ASEAN summit resulted in various important declarations and statements, including the ASEAN Leaders' Declaration on ASEAN as an Epicentrum of Growth.
Iskandar said that rules of origin (ROO) are the foundation of international trade as they determine whether a certain good is qualified to receive special treatment in a trade agreement.
The ATIGA WG-ROO meeting was held to facilitate ASEAN member countries to reach consensus on the articles in the trade agreement that had not been agreed upon, she stated.
"We held the 6th meeting as a forum to negotiate and find solutions to boost the efficiency and effectiveness of ATIGA's ROO," Iskandar pointed out.
She said that Indonesia expected the meeting to result in an upgraded ROO chapter that will help strengthen the country's role as a leader of ASEAN.
The upgraded chapter is also expected to update the existing ROO provisions, thereby making them more relevant in the hopes of guiding the region to create more modern, inclusive, and facilitative goods trade activities, she highlighted.
Related news: Indonesia accords priority to equality in trade: Thohir
Related news: Trade Minister outlines steps to maintain ASEAN's positive trade trend
Translator: Imamatul S, Tegar Nurfitra
Editor: Anton Santoso
Copyright © ANTARA 2023
