ASA is the acronym for the “Association of Secretaries and Administrative Professionals in Asia Pacific”. Its membership encompasses countries in Asia-Pacfic region.
The ASA has for its vision to be recognized as the apex body for Secretarial and Administrative Professional Association in Asia-Pacific. Its Mission aims to provide a platform for core competencies development and promote friendship, understanding and exchange of ideas and experiences among the members, and likewise to propagate the Secretarial and Administrative Profession in the global business community.
Presently, ASA boasts of 14 active member-countries in Asia-Pacific region. The biennial ASA Congress met every two years and hosted by a member country on rotation.
A highlight of the ASA Congress is the ASA Professional Secretary Award given to the ASA member country participant who survived the grueling panel and stage interviews and adjudged the best among the contestants. This was later replaced by a more challenging, relevant, and innovative ASA Project Award introduced in 2012 initiated by The Women’s Secretaries of Thailand (WSAT) during the 21st ASA Congress in Bangladesh and implemented the following ASA Congress held in Pakistan in 2014. The award has for its key objective the fostering of esprit-de-corp and camaraderie among members, i.e., strengthening team relations, encouraging a healthy sharing and exchange of new and innovative ideas, and inspiring and cultivating the interests and involvement of association members to contribute part of their time, energy, talent and other resources to help uplift the lives and morale of other people.
The award is given to the ASA member-association who has initiated a project that benefited a community through civic activities and social services rendered to its people and likewise an undertaking that enrich the well being and development of the ASA members as well.
It is worth mentioning that the first Asian Congress of Secretaries was the brainchild of the PAS and it was held on February 22, 1974 at the AIM. Other social functions during the weeklong Congress were held in different hotels and the participants enjoyed the facilities and amenities each hotel offered. The day allotted for city tours and an out-of-town trip to Pagsanjan Falls – a premier tourist destination, was also a hit among the participants.
More than 300 foreign delegates attended the said congress where the PAS proposed the formation of an Association of Secretaries in Asia (ASA), which the nine delegations heartily endorsed, namely: Australia, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Philippines, Taiwan, Singapore, and Thailand. The PAS and The Women Secretaries’ Association of Thailand (WSAT) now called The Women’s Secretaries & Administrative Professionals Association of Thailand constituted the original signatories as not all of the aforementioned delegations were headed by their respective presidents. Then PAS president Virginia P. Elbinias was elected the first president of ASA, and was later conferred the title of ASA’s Founding President.