Singapore hosted the 25th DGICM and its Related Meetings from 23 to 25 August 2022. The DGICM is a regular gathering of heads of the immigration agencies in ASEAN to discuss and coordinate regional cooperation on immigration and consular matters towards the achievement of ASEAN Community-building goals. This is the first DGICM held in person following the reopening of borders in the region.

2.          Minister for Communications and Information & Second Minister for Home Affairs, Mrs. Josephine Teo graced the opening ceremony on 24 August 2022. In her welcome speech, she emphasised that keeping borders open to maintain connectivity in the region, and yet be able to curb the spread of diseases across borders, will require innovative thinking, a willingness to experiment and collaborate between border agencies. She urged the DGICM to continue to foster even stronger coordination on border measures to improve regional response and resilience during health crises.

3.          The Meeting included the 5th ASEAN Heads of Major Immigration Checkpoints Forum (AMICF) and the 17th ASEAN Immigration Intelligence Forum (AIIF) on 23 August 2022. This was followed by the 17th DGICM + Australia Consultation and the inaugural^[1] DGICM consultation with People’s Republic of China, Japan and Republic of Korea (DGICM + 3 Consultation) on 25 August 2022.

4.          The DGICM saw a good turnout of more than 100 delegates from the 10 ASEAN Member states, Australia, People’s Republic of China, Japan and Republic of Korea. As Singapore is the host country, the DGICM was chaired by Commissioner of the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority, Mr. Marvin Sim.

5.          The series of meetings discussed regional and international cooperation in immigration and consular matters in a post-COVID world, as well as ways to enhance border security, such as through information sharing of threat assessment, fraud detection and joint training initiatives. The participants agreed strengthening coordination amongst countries is necessary to facilitate essential travel during unforeseen circumstances such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Key issues discussed at the meeting include:

a. National, regional, and international efforts on immigration, consular and border management matters amidst the COVID-19 pandemic;
           
b. Institutionalise a platform for sharing and communicating significant changes in border measures among ASEAN Member States in a pandemic;

c. Implementation of the ASEAN Travel Corridor Arrangement Framework (ATCAF), to facilitate the safe and speedy travel of persons providing essential services, as well as the continued flow of essential goods during the COVID-19 pandemic;

d. Master Plan on ASEAN Connectivity (MPAC) 2025, which will review the state of electronic visa development in ASEAN, and the best practices amongst the ASEAN Member States; and

e. ASEAN-Australia Training Needs Analysis (TNA) to identify emerging training needs, such as cyber threats, for immigration officers in the region. The results of the TNA will allow for an evidence based, future-oriented, multi-year ASEAN-Australia Programme of Work for training cooperation to be developed.

6.          In his opening address at the DGICM + 3 Consultation, Mr. Marvin Sim emphasised the significance of the inaugural meeting, and expressed confidence that it would lay the foundation for stronger cooperation amongst ASEAN Member States, People’s Republic of China, Japan and Republic of Korea. The Consultation exchanged views on cooperation in the aspect of immigration, consular affairs and border management.

7.          Thailand will be hosting the 26th DGICM and its Related Meetings in 2023.

The ASEAN Directors-General of Immigration, Heads of Consular Affairs Divisions of the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and ASEAN Secretariat (Photo: ICA)