Phnom Penh (FN), Aug. 3 – Cambodian delegate minister Kao Kim Hourn has been appointed as the secretary-general of ASEAN, effective from 2023.

Secretary of state at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Kung Phoak spoke at the press conference on Wednesday (Aug 3) evening.

"During the retreat meeting, Cambodian foreign minister Prak Sokhonn announced that delegate minister Kao Kim Hourn was appointed as the secretary-general of ASEAN, effective from 2023," said Phoak.

He added that Cambodia's decision was welcomed by the ASEAN foreign ministers.

Kao Kim Hourn is one of the three people nominated by the Royal Government of Cambodia to be the secretary-general of ASEAN in 2023. This is the first time that the kingdom has an opportunity to be the secretary-general of ASEAN since her membership in 1999.

According to Article 11 of the ASEAN Charter, the ASEAN secretary-general will be formally appointed by the ASEAN Summit for a five-year term and cannot be extended. This position shall be selected from among the ASEAN member states with taking into account integrity, competence, professional experience, and gender equality.

ASEAN was formally established in 1967 and ASEAN Secretariat was founded in 1976. There are ten members in ASEAN namely Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
=FRESH NEWS