ASEAN Prize 2026: Call for Nominations – $20,000 Award

March 3, 2026 Lucas Fernandez – World Editor World

JAKARTA, 3 March 2026 – The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) today formally commenced the nomination process for the 2026 ASEAN Prize, an annual award recognizing significant contributions to ASEAN community building. The call for nominations opened today and will remain open until 25 May 2026.

The ASEAN Prize, established in 2018, honors both ASEAN citizens and organizations demonstrating exceptional achievements in fostering ASEAN identity, promoting regional engagement, and contributing to an inclusive and dynamic ASEAN Community. This year’s recipient will be presented with the ASEAN Prize Trophy and a US$20,000 cash award, funded by the Temasek Foundation of Singapore, during the Opening Ceremony of the ASEAN Summit, under the Chairmanship of the Philippines.

According to the ASEAN Secretariat, nominations should highlight contributions in areas including outstanding collaboration between ASEAN Member States, collaboration between ASEAN and external partners, people-to-people engagement, economic integration, and other contributions to ASEAN Community building. Supporting documentation substantiating the nominee’s achievements is required, as is a character reference.

Self-nominations and posthumous submissions will not be considered. The Judging Committee, chaired by the Secretary-General of ASEAN, Dr. Kao Kim Hourn, and comprised of both former and current ASEAN Secretaries-General, will assess the nominations.

Last year, the Union of Youth Federations of Cambodia (UYFC) received the ASEAN Prize under Malaysia’s Chairmanship. Prime Minister of Malaysia Anwar Ibrahim and Dr. Kao Kim Hourn presented the award to the UYFC at the 47th ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur, recognizing the organization’s work in fostering understanding and awareness of ASEAN through youth-led initiatives. The UYFC’s contributions were lauded for promoting regional cooperation, cross-cultural collaboration, and peacebuilding among ASEAN youth.

Since its inception, the ASEAN Prize has been awarded to a total of four individuals and four organizations. The prize reflects ASEAN’s commitment to recognizing those who have contributed to regional integration and a stronger ASEAN identity.

Individuals and organizations intending to submit a nomination must do so through the National Focal Point (NFP) of their respective ASEAN Member State. The ASEAN Secretariat has provided a list of NFPs, including contact details for Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Timor-Leste, and Viet Nam.

The ASEAN Prize 2026 nomination form is available for download at https://asean.org/nomination-form/. The deadline for submissions is 25 May 2026, at 5 PM GMT+7 (Jakarta time).

ASEAN, established in 1967, comprises ten Member States: Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Timor Leste and Viet Nam. The ASEAN Community was formally established on 31 December 2015, with the ASEAN Secretariat based in Jakarta, Indonesia.