Arguably, the most significant outcome of the ASEAN+3 Finance and Central Bank Deputies
Meeting in May 2012 was the enhancement of the ASEAN+3 Finance Ministers Meeting
(AFMM+3) to the ASEAN+3 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors’ Meeting
(AFMGM+3), whereby the central bank Governors of the 13 member countries (plus Hong
Kong, China) would henceforth be invited to participate in this annual senior-level meeting of the
ASEAN+3 economies. In past AFMM+3 meetings, central banks were represented at the deputy
governor level, so held a lower-level position in the overall decision-making process. The
inclusion of central bank Governors marked the beginning of a more comprehensive and
integrated approach to the management of regional financial cooperation, whereby both fiscal
and monetary policy officials jointly oversee and decide on CMIM matters. Participation of
central bank governors in the annual ASEAN+3 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors’
Meeting would also allow a more meaningful and in-depth discussion on the challenges and
vulnerabilities of each economy, and further potential avenues for cooperation. As frequently
stressed in past works, such as Takagi (2010), surveillance activities must reach audiences at
the highest levels of policymaking to be relevant and effective.