On 10–11 December 2025, the ASEAN Senior Economic Officials’ Meeting Retreat (SEOM Retreat) 2026 took place in Boracay, Philippines, marking the beginning of the series of activities under the Philippines’ ASEAN Chairmanship 2026. The Meeting was chaired by Ms. Marie Sherylyn D. Aquia, Director of the Bureau of International Trade Relations, Department of Trade and Industry of the Philippines, with the participation of representatives from all 11 ASEAN Member States (this was the first time Timor-Leste attended a SEOM Retreat as an official member, after becoming ASEAN’s 11th full member in October 2025) and the ASEAN Secretariat.

Vietnamese delegation was led by Ministry of Industry and Trade (Multilateral Trade Policy Department) representative, together with representatives from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and relevant agencies of the Ministry of Industry and Trade (Foreign Market Development Department, Office of the Inter-agency Steering Committee for International Economic Integration, and Viet Nam Trade Office in the Philippines).

SEOM Retreat is an important annual ASEAN meeting where ASEAN Senior Economic Officials engage in in-depth discussions on strategic orientations, review the progress of economic commitments, and prepare inputs for Ministerial and Leaders’ meetings in the following year. At the SEOM Retreat 2026, the first event in the series of activities under the Philippines’ ASEAN Chairmanship 2026, the Philippines introduced the ASEAN Chairmanship theme: “Navigating our Future, Together” and the 19 Priority Economic Deliverables (PEDs) for 2026, grouped into five strategic thrusts under the acronym SAIL-ASEAN, including: (i) Strengthening trade linkages and investment linkages; (ii) Accelerating digital transformation; (iii) Integrating ASEAN's MSME development agenda; (iv) Leveraging the creative economy and Innovation; and (v) Advancing sustainable and inclusive economies. Overall, the Philippines’ PEDs were assessed as practical, coherent, and conducive to driving the implementation of the AEC in its new phase.

The Meeting also discussed other key ASEAN economic cooperation matters, such as reviewing the implementation of guidances from the 2025 Summits and Ministerial Meetings; updating on the implementation of Malaysia’s 18 PEDs for 2025, with notation that 15 out of 18 PEDs have been fully completed; updating on the development of the AEC Strategic Plan 2026–2030 and the completion of the post-2025 AEC monitoring and evaluation framework; and reviewing progress to accelerate negotiations on the ASEAN Digital Economy Framework Agreement (DEFA), preparing for legal scrubbing phase and with the view to signing the Agreement at the ASEAN Summit at the end of 2026; updating on Timor-Leste’s accession progress to ASEAN’s economic agreements; and discussed the proposal by the Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA) to become ASEAN’s Knowledge Partner, as well as ERIA’s request to increase the annual financial contributions of ASEAN Member States.

Also at the Meeting, AMS discussed adjustments to ASEAN’s working arrangements with Dialogue Partners, including the frequency and levels of participation in ASEAN–Partner meetings and events, to ensure practicality and prevent meeting overload. Member States tasked the respective Country Coordinators to continue consultations with each Dialogue Partner and report back at SEOM 1/57.

The SEOM Retreat 2026 also noted Member States’ appreciation for the Philippines’ professional, thoughtful, and warm hospitality. Delegations recognized the historic milestone and new advancement in ASEAN integration marked by Timor-Leste’s first participation in SEOM as a full member. Discussions at the Meeting further reaffirmed ASEAN’s commitment to building an ASEAN Economic Community that is cohesive, effective, inclusive, and sustainable, and ready to respond to the increasingly complex geo-economic landscape in the future.

The SEOM Retreat 2026 concluded successfully in the afternoon of 11 December 2025, laying an important foundation for preparations toward SEOM 1/57 scheduled to take place in Bohol in January 2026, the AEM Retreat scheduled for March 2026, and the full series of events under the Philippines’ ASEAN Chairmanship 2026./.

Source: Compiled by the Multilateral Trade Policy Department, Ministry of Industry and Trade of Viet Nam