Source: Bernama (Malaysia)
Source type: News Agency
Published on: 22 Apr 2008

The plenary session of the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) Culture Ministers' Meeting here Tuesday focused on an action plan to ensure the younger generation in both continents understand and appreciate their culture and traditions.

Unity, Culture, Arts and Heritage Minister Datuk Shafie Apdal said among the proposals to achieve the objective, were having cultural and student exchange programmes and promotion the craft products of member countries. "Although these efforts have been undertaken, they need to be intensified to ensure the preservation of the arts, culture and traditions," he told reporters after chairing the plenary session.

Hence, he said, more students from Europe would be encouraged to visit Asian countries as suggested by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi in his opening speech Tuesday morning.

The four-day meeting with the theme, "Cultural Diversity: Realising the Action Plan", gathers 97 representatives from Europe, including Denmark, France, Finland, Germany, Italy and Bulgaria, and Japan, China, Vietnam, Brunei and Indonesia, among the participating Asian countries.