Asia and Pacific

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In Asia, the EESC maintains relations with civil society organisations in China, Japan, Singapore, South Korea and Vietnam.

A Civil Society Round Table with China is in place: it was set up in 2007 following the 9th EU-China Summit and convenes once a year.

A Follow-up Committeewith Japan was established in February 2009 to monitor the civil society dimension of EU-Japan relations and promote cooperation between the EESC and business, workers', environmental and consumer organisations and other major civil society organisations in Japan. An EU-Japan Domestic Advisory Group was established under the EU-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement, which assigns a monitoring and advisory role to civil society under its trade and sustainable development chapter.

The EU has concluded free trade agreements with the following Asian countries: South Korea (2011), Japan (2019), Singapore (2019) and Vietnam (2020). These agreements are characterised by the inclusion of trade and sustainable development chapters, and give the EESC and other civil society organisations – together with civil society organisations in the partner countries – a formal role in monitoring their implementation and advising the relevant political authorities in the areas of environmental, social and labour standards and other matters which are of direct relevance to civil society, through the Domestic Advisory Groups (DAGs). Two to three meetings of the EU DAGs are held in each year, and a joint meeting takes place once a year.

In addition, the EESC engages with civil society in other Asian countries and in relevant international events on an ad hoc basis.

  • During the meeting, the EU DAG will discuss with a representative of the European Parliament the progress in work on its report on implementation of the EU-Korea FTA. The European Commission will update participants on the state of play and the next steps in the implementation of the EU-Korea joint project related to the ILO Convention No. 111. The EU DAG will discuss moreover preparations for the next EU-Korea Civil Society Forum.

  • The EESC Employers' Group is organising a seminar on "Strengthening European Growth and Competitiveness: Proactive Trade Agenda – NOW!" taking place on 26 October in Helsinki and jointly organized with the Confederation of Finnish Industries and the International Chamber of Commerce, ICC Finland.

    Trade and Investment are hugely important for the EU: 1 in 7 EU jobs depend on exports. The EU cannot risk falling behind in the global race to build a wide and ambitious network of free trade agreements. The signing of the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement (involving 12 countries and 40% of world GDP) is a timely reminder of this. This seminar, which will be attended by many of our Members together with Finnish employers and entrepreneurs, politicians and academics aims to examine how to best contribute positively to the debate as trade agreements (TTIP - TISA - CETA - EU-JAPAN) increasingly become a top political issue.

  • During the meeting, the EU DAG will discuss with a representative of the European Parliament the progress in work on its report on implementation of the EU-Korea FTA. The Group may also inquire about the outcomes of the EP's mission to the Republic of Korea, which took place in May 2016. The European Commission will update participants on the state of play and the next steps in the ex-post evaluation of the agreement as well as implementation of the EU-Korea joint project related to the ILO Convention No. 111. The Commission will also inform the Group about the preparations for the meetings with Korea under the trade and sustainable development chapter, which will be held in Brussels by the end of 2016. The EU DAG will discuss moreover preparations for the next EU-Korea Civil Society Forum.