Vietnamese president Nguyen Minh Triet and National Assembly chairman Nguyen Phu Trong said this demanded closer cooperation with stronger efforts between the executive and the legislative branches of government.

Inspired by the design of the European Union, the ASEAN Community will be established comprising three pillars, namely political and security cooperation, economic cooperation, and socio-cultural cooperation.

"The ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) has taken initiatives and steps to develop a more effective cooperation with ASEAN, and the body has responded positively.”

"I believe that we are now on the right track towards a strong, caring and sharing ASEAN Community," Triet said in his message to the 28th AIPA conference in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Monday.

The 2007 year would prove to be the most important year in ASEAN's 40-year history if it were to knuckle down and build the Southeast Asian political and economic community, Trong said in his speech at the conference.

ASEAN secretary-general Ong Keng Yong said that to build the ASEAN Community by 2015, the bloc had to work towards integrating its economies into a single market, narrowing the development gaps among member countries and addressing the social impacts of the economic development by forging compassionate society based on sharing.

"All these will require a stronger and more efficient organization than what ASEAN is today," he said.

He said the challenge in building the ASEAN Community now would be to take ASEAN to its people to create better awareness and also understand better how ASEAN could better help them.

Ong said that no other group in ASEAN could play this role better than the parliamentarians who are the people's representatives.

Deputy Speaker Lim Si Cheng of Malaysia’s House of Representatives told the conference that in building the Asean Community, the social development of the people should not take a back seat but be ASEAN'S prime concern.

He said Malaysia was only too happy to share its experiences in poverty reduction for the betterment of the ASEAN Community as its poverty rate had dropped to five percent today compared with 50 percent during the early 70's.

Lim said AIPA member countries must and should continue to focus on improving the quality of life of their people by ensuring social justice and working towards the reduction, if not eradication, of poverty.

"We must promote equitable and effective participation of women and participation of various sectors of society in relevant activities of ASEAN," he said.

He also called for cooperation in educational development to meet the demand of the knowledge-based economy and the reduction, if not eradication, of illiteracy.

Cambodian National Assembly President Samdech Heng Samrin said that building the Asean Community into a caring and sharing community had to first begin with each member country holding and staring the same vision, common efforts and practice of fundamental principles.

Source: VNA, Bernama.