Strengthening intraregional connectivity in trade, transport, and energy can unlock the potential in the subregion to accelerate progress towards the achievement of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development as well as national socioeconomic goals. However, geo-political challenges in the subregion have hampered cooperation towards seamless connectivity across countries in East and North-East Asia. Also, on the energy front, while there is shared recognition on the need for increased connectivity to harness the subregion’s abundant sources of renewable energy and reduce the heavy reliance on fossil fuels, there are many obstacles to tackle to reach meaningful cooperation on cross-border power connectivity.
Our work facilitates research and analysis, dialogue, capacity building and knowledge sharing for deeper and broader economic integration through seamless connectivity. On trade and transport, SOENEA provides member governments and non-government stakeholders with dialogue platforms and technical projects to improve domestic and intergovernmental arrangements for trade and transport facilitation. In this connection, SOENEA is lending substantive technical cooperation to the Economic Corridor Programme of China, Mongolia and the Russian Federation signed in 2016 covering several areas of connectivity (e.g., transport infrastructure, energy, trade facilitation and customs procedures). On energy connectivity, the ENEA Office serves as the secretariat for the North-East Asia Regional Power Interconnection and Cooperation Forum (NEARPIC), the network of power agencies and institutions, to share information and build a common vision and strategy.
