The 16th ASEAN-Australia Forum was held at Canberra from 3 to 4 May 1994. ASEAN and Australia had extensive discussions on a number of regional and global economic and political issues They reviewed the progress of development cooperation, including cooperative projects under the ASEAN-Australia Economic Cooperation Programme (AAECP).

The 16th Forum discussed ASEAN-Australia trade and investment relations, sub-regional growth areas, the ASEAN Free Trade Area. the Australia & New Zealand Closer Economic Relations Agreement ANCERTA) and other international arrangements such as APEC. With respect to ASEAN-Australia trade and investment, the 16th Forum noted that economic reform and the pursuit of outward-oriented economic policies in both ASEAN and Australia have led to a rapid expansion in two way trade The Forum agreed on the need to continue to improve trade by removing, barriers to trade and investment.

At the 16th Forum, ASEAN briefed Australia on the latest development on AFTA. “For its part, Australia presented the results of its study on the impact of AFTA on Australia. The Study concluded that in the near term, the effect of AFTA on Australia would be minimal but in the long term, the effect would be greater, particularly if Australia's manufactured exports continued to grow steadily as a proportion of its total exports to ASEAN. and if agricultural products or raw materials were included in AFTA.

Apart from economic issues, the 16th Forum also discussed the regional security outlook, developments in the Korean Peninsula, preparations for the ASEAN Regional Forum, the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in South East Asia, South East Asia Nuclear Weapons Free Zone (SEANWFZ), non-proliferation, Myanmar and Cambodia. Both sides concluded that countries in Asia-Pacific now face a much more fluid and complex situation compared with the past four decades.

The ASEAN-Australia a Economic Cooperation Programme (AAECP) is the major component of development cooperation under the ASEAN-Australia Dialogue. Phase III of the AAECP expired on 9 July 1994 and extensive preparations have been initiated since last year to launch the AAECP Phase III by July 1994

Unlike previous phases of the AAECP, Phase III consists of two components: a projects stream and a linkages stream. As agreed at the 15th ASEAN-Australia Forum held at Bangkok in January 1993, the projects stream focuses on the agreed sectors of cooperation: science and technologi environment, telecommunications and agro-based industries

Six related priority sectors come under the linkages stream: environmental management (e.g.., marine science, energy efficiency, conservation and demand management and industrial waste management), transportation, biotechnology and agriculture/agro-based industries. The linkages stream is aimed at facilitating networking between the private sectors in ASEAN and Australia and identifying opportunities for commercial collaboration. The linkages stream will replace activities in the former Trade and Investment Promotion Programme (TIPP).

The preparation of the AAECP III involved a comprehensive process whereby proposals from ASEAN and Australia were identified, prioritized and approved. Two Programme Planning Workshops were convened in 1993 to appraise and recommend the reformulation of project, proposals submitted by ASEAN bodies and Australia to the sub-Committee of the Joint Planning Committee (JPC-SC) which was tasked to recommend proposals for the approval of the Joint Planning Committee (JPC).

Following the 2nd Meeting of the JPC-SC and the subsequent 5th Meeting of the JPC as well as other related consultations, six projects were selected to proceed to the feasibility and design study stage :

1. Coastal Zone Environment and Resource Management Project;
   
   
2. Waste Water Treatment Technology Transfer and Cleaner Production Demonstration Project;
   
   
3. Environmentally Sound Energy Production and Waste Water Disposal from Biomass/ Wastes Supplemented by Fossil Fuels;
   
   
4. ASEAN-Australia Forum Telecommunications Cooperation on Training Project : Joint Training and Technology Development and Application-,
   
   
5. Electricity and the Environment: a Framework for Decision Making in the ASEAN Region and ASEAN Power Grid; and
   
   
6. Development of Food Safety and Quality Assurance Systems for Marketing and Distribution of Fresh and Processed Horticultural Products in ASEAN.

As of May 1994, feasibility design studies for the first two projects have been completed. The former project would be ready for implementation in July 1994 - the first under the AAECP Phase III.

Australia has approved an allocation of A$32 million for the next four years of the AAECP Phase III. of which A$18 million (60 per cent) will be available for the projects stream and A$14 million (40 per cent) for the linkages stream.

The AAECP Phase III Linkages Stream Guidelines were adopted by the 5th Meeting of the AAECP JPC at Bangkok in March 1993 and the 16th ASEAN-Australia Forum in May 1994. In March 1994, AIDAB conducted information seminars in all the ASEAN capitals to publicize the linkages stream programme.

ASEAN-Australia cooperation also extends to telecommunications, education and training, environment, industry and technology, and culture and information. Sectors such as science and technology, environment and telecommunications are under the AAECP but cooperation in education and training, culture and information are pursued outside the AAECP umbrella.

As agreed at the 16th ASEAN-Australia Forum in 1993. cooperation in education and training covered the areas of regional language training, institutional links, recognition of skills and qualifications. and vocational and technical education. Since then, a number of activities have been implemented in the areas of vocational English language training and vocational education. Australia organized the Workshop on Vocational English Language Training in Singapore in May 1994 and the Workshop on Cooperation in Vocational Education and Training at Brisbane, Australia, from 9 to 11 November 1993. At the 16th ASEAN-Australia Forum, Australia proposed three more workshops in the areas of tourism and hotel industry, agriculture, and engineering with a view to developing industry curriculum and to share best practices, for funding consideration under the AAECP linkages stream. Other projects to promote institutional links between ASEAN and Australian institutions and to establish a regional network of English language training resources were also discussed.

Science and technology has been a mainstay of the AAECP and has been discussed under a separate Working Group in previous Forums. Beginning with the 16th ASEAN Australia Forum, science and technology will be discussed under the newly established Working Group on Industry and Technology, which is intended to identify opportunities for industry collaboration in matters related to transportation, communications/ information technology and microelectronics and biotechnology.

Matters in the area of culture and information were discussed under a separate Working Group for the first time at the 16th ASEAN-Australia Forum. The Working Group identified areas of common interest and agreed that reciprocal ex- changes of information officers as well as human resource development projects in the areas of the performing arts, film archives, heritage preservation, theater management and distance education could be pursued.