Speeches
Welcome Remarks Gala Dinner of the 16th ASEAN TELMIN, Plenary Hall, International Convention Centre, 25th November 2016
Updated 25 Nov 2016
WELCOME REMARKS
GALA DINNER OF THE 16TH ASEAN TELMIN
PLENARY HALL, INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION CENTRE
FRIDAY, 25 NOVEMBER 2016, 7:30PM
Honourable Ministers, ASEAN Secretary General, Mr Le Luong Minh
Your Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen
Assalamu’alaikum and a very good evening.
It is my pleasure to welcome you all to the 16th TELMIN Gala Dinner and the ASEAN ICT Awards 2016. I know it has been a long day and I shall be very brief.
The Gala Dinner has always been the highlight of ASEAN meetings, a night filled with music, songs and cultural performances and a bit of humour. Tonight we are having all these with a bit of Brunei flavor.
So let me just finish off quickly.
Tonight, we are here to celebrate the friendship, partnership and camaraderie within ASEAN, and with our Dialogue Partners.
We are also here to recognize and celebrate among the best ICT innovations in ASEAN.
The ASEAN ICT Awards (AICTA) is aimed at spurring creativity and innovation in ASEAN, and invites participation from a wider ASEAN community. I am both pleased and honoured that Brunei Darussalam is hosting the AICTA Awards.
Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
This year’s TELMIN carries the theme “Connected Innovative Community”. This is most relevant, I feel, especially as we live in an era where much of our future progress and competitive advantage depend on our creative culture and innovation.
For that, I would like to congratulate our finalists from Cambodia, Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore and Indonesia, for their achievements in reaching this stage of the competition.
This evening, we recognize your accomplishments, and, in so doing, we celebrate the promise you represent for even greater achievements in the days and years ahead.
So this should not be the end but the beginning. Albert Einstein once said “we cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them”. Your innovative solutions and creative ideas are a testament to that.
Let me also take this opportunity to thank our sponsors for supporting our meeting through their generous contribution. They are also here with us tonight and I am sure they are also proud and excited to welcome you to Brunei Darussalam.
And now, I don’t want to stand in between you and your dinner. Let us relax, enjoy the evening with the performance we line up for you.
Thank you.
Wabillahi Taufik Walhidayah, Wasalamu Alaikum Warrah Matullahi Wabarakatuh.