Since its inauguration in 1996 in Manila, member-countries have taken turns in hosting the association’s annual conferences, in conjunction with the annual Executive Council and General Assembly meetings. All SEAPAVAA conferences feature a symposium, lasting two to three days. The topics are keyed to strategic issues that are both generally and locally important. They are deliberately not restricted to SEAPAVAA members -they are open to all. In some cases, there is a nominal fee to cover costs.
On some occasions, there’s an additional workshop, before or after the conference proper. Also, there are always printed materials arising from a symposium. These become important reference resources afterwards, especially if they are printed in the local language.