Pocket meetings in line with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Tourism Forum in Cebu started officially on Monday, January 26, 2026.

The meetings for the 63^rd ASEAN National Tourism Organizations meeting attended by senior officials from 11 member-states are being held at a luxury hotel in Cebu City.

The delegates are from Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Brunei, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Myanmar, and ASEAN's newest member, Timor-Leste.

Department of Tourism Undersecretary Verna Buensuceso led the formal opening of the meeting.

In her speech, Buensuceso emphasized the huge importance of Cebu in the ASEAN tourism history.

She also welcomed Timor-Leste as the 11^th member-state of the ASEAN, and underscored that its inclusion has strengthened the regional community.

Buensuceso said that the meeting is significant because the future of a country’s tourism sector cannot be shaped by one nation alone; strategies, standards, and innovations of member-states have to be aligned.

The ASEAN Tourism Forum is among key activities in line with the hosting of the Philippines of the ASEAN Summit 2026 which the country chairs.

This is the fourth time that the Philippines hosted the ASEAN meetings. The first was in 1987 in Manila, in 2007 in Cebu and in Manila, and in 2017 at Clark in Angeles City, Pampanga.