On October 15, SGE took part in the 8th Senior Officials Meeting on Sports between Japan and ASEAN held in Hanoi, Vietnam. At the meeting, SGE had honorably presented the progress and future direction of the ASEAN-JAPAN Actions on Sport: Gender Equality project.

The meeting reviewed the progress of the five priority cooperation areas jointly implemented by Japan and the ten ASEAN Member States under the Chiang Mai Declaration, adopted at the 3rd ASEAN Plus Japan Ministerial Meeting on Sports in 2023. Since 2023, SGE has been commissioned by the Japan Sports Agency to lead the ASEAN-JAPAN Actions on Sport: Gender Equality initiative, and Deputy Director Dr. Noguchi delivered the report.

To date, the project has conducted analyses of gender issues across ASEAN countries, identified priority challenges, developed action plans, and established gender indicators to visualize the progress.

Looking ahead, we aim to support ASEAN Member States in incorporating gender-related strategies into their national sports policies and advancing Gender Responsive Budgeting in the sport sector.

The meeting also endorsed the launch of discussions toward establishing common ASEAN gender indicators for sport, and government representatives expressed strong expectations for the initiative’s continued development.

Learning from all 11 ASEAN Member States and working closely with the Japan Sports Agency, SGE remains committed to contributing to the mainstreaming of gender equality through sport across Asia.