The Opening Ceremony for the First Course for ASEAN Diplomats was held at Itamaraty Palace, Rio de Janeiro on 6 August 2012. The two-week course was organised by the Fundação Alexandre de Gusmão (FUNAG) of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Brazil. The ceremony was attended by the Federal Deputy Perpetua Almeida, President of the Committee on Foreign Relations and National Defense of Brazil and officiated by Ambassador Jose Vicente de Sa Pimentel, President of FUNAG. Ambassador Dato´ Sudha Devi gave a short opening remarks as Dean of the ASEAN Ambassadors´ Group in Brasilia.
All ASEAN Member States had each a participant with a representative from the ASEAN Secretariat in Jakarta. Ms. Rus Shazila Osman from Wisma Putra participated in the course. The course aimed to narrow the information gap and provide a platform for the exchange of views and ideas.
