ADVANCE
The U.S. Mission works closely with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) on projects and engagement with ASEAN. USAID and the State Department have co-funded the ASEAN Development Vision to Advance National Cooperation and Economic Integration (ADVANCE) Project. This project has three ASEAN-wide elements:
- Technical Assistance and Training Facility (the Facility): The Facility, housed in the Secretariat, provides technical support and capacity building assistance to develop the ASEAN community. The Facility has supported a wide variety of ASEAN activities, including the ASEAN Regional Forum, the development of private sector roadmaps, the establishment of a repository of migrant worker laws and regulations, the establishment of the Human Rights Resource Center for ASEAN, and ASEAN’s response to Cyclone Nargis.
- ASEAN Single Window Program (ASW): The ASW Project supports the development of a coordinated system within ASEAN to speed up the clearance of goods and increase transparency in cross-border transactions. At the national level, the ASW Project supports the development of national single windows – national systems that allow the trading community to submit and process all customs documents in one place. At the regional level, the Project supports the development of an ASEAN-wide single window for coordinating the flow of data among Member-States’ national single windows.
- Valuing Economic Linkages Under Economic Integration (VALUE): This program provides technical assistance to improve private sector integration within ASEAN’s priority industries. The project has supported the growth of supply chains in textiles and garments across multiple countries in ASEAN, particularly in the developing economies of Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam.