Japan gives $20m to ASEAN fund

Japan gives $20m to ASEAN fund

TOKYO (AFP): Japan has agreed to give US$20 million to a Southeast Asian fund designed to promote education, training and business exchanges in the region, the foreign ministry said on Thursday.

The Japanese government and representatives from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) signed documents to confirm the deal in Jakarta. It was the first contribution to the fund from a non-ASEAN nation.

ASEAN groups Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Laos, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.