The 13th ASEAN Finance Ministers’ and Central Bank Governors’ Meeting (13th AFMGM) and Related Meetings were held from 7 to 10 April 2026 in virtual format under the Philippines’ 2026 Chairmanship which is themed “Navigating Our Future, Together”. Brunei Darussalam was represented by Yang Mulia Awang Haji Asrul Adrain bin Pehin Orang Kaya Setia Pahlawan Dato Seri Setia Dr. Haji Ahmad, Acting Permanent Secretary (Fiscal I), Ministry of Finance and Economy, and Yang Mulia Dayang Hajah Rashidah binti Haji Sabtu, Managing Director of the Brunei Darussalam Central Bank (BDCB).
The series of meetings began with dialogues between ASEAN Finance Ministers and ASEAN Central Bank Governors with the international financial institutions, namely International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Bank Group (WBG) and Asian Development Bank (ADB), as well as regional business councils, like ASEAN Business Advisory Council (ASEAN-BAC), European Union – ASEAN Business Council (EU-ABC) and United States-ASEAN Business Council (US-ABC). The ASEAN Finance and Central Bank Deputies also met with the United States Treasury and Australia Treasury representatives, as well as with the UK-ASEAN Business Council and TheCityUK. These external engagements focused on joint initiatives and partners’ support to strengthen ASEAN regional collaboration in addressing multi-faceted challenges and realising opportunities in order to secure long term economic resiliency and sustainability.
At the 13th AFMGM, in welcoming the Philippines’ 2026 ASEAN Chairmanship priorities, the Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors appreciated the progress and discussed areas of cooperation including capital markets development, sustainable finance, regional payments connectivity and other initiatives under the Roadmap for Financial and Monetary Integration in ASEAN and the AFMGM process.
During these meetings, Yang Mulia Awang Haji Asrul Adrain, among others:
- expressed appreciation to the Philippines for its leadership as ASEAN Chair in 2026 and further welcomed the finance initiatives under the priority economic deliverables this year. In advancing these priorities, Brunei Darussalam looked forward to sustained policy dialogues, peer learning as well as greater engagements with ASEAN’s external partners and the private sector;
- appreciated the progress in ASEAN finance cooperation including ASEAN Single Window, ASEAN Treasury Forum, and ASEAN infrastructure development through the ASEAN Infrastructure Fund. Related to this, deepened engagements to secure trade and supply chain connectivity; mainstreamed climate action initiatives; as well as streamlined and focused coordination between finance track and other sectoral committees like health, disaster risks management and food security, were also emphasised;
- recognised the contribution of regional cooperation to Brunei Darussalam’s domestic priorities and subsequently shared its national budget focus on strengthening fiscal stability and governance, empowering the economy through transformation and innovation; and ensuring social sustainability and future development; and
- welcomed strengthened support from IMF, WBG and ADB, in mobilising resources, providing policy advice, and delivering targeted knowledge sharing. Such collaboration would be particularly important to close infrastructure gaps, enhance ASEAN’s competitiveness and boost socio-economic development.
The Joint Statement of the 13th ASEAN Finance Ministers’ and Central Bank Governors’ Meeting issued on Friday 10 April 2025 appears as Annex A.
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Prepared by:
International Affairs Division
Ministry of Finance and Economy
Negara Brunei Darussalam
Email: pr@mofe.gov.bn
Date: 13th April 2026