The flag of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations is the banner of the regional bloc founded in Bangkok on 8 August 1967. The current flag, with its rice-sheaves emblem, was adopted in 1997 to mark the organisation's 30th anniversary.
The design
The Flag of ASEAN is a national emblem rendered in the colours and proportions defined by the country’s flag law. Its official aspect ratio is 2:3, the height-to-length ratio that fixes how the flag should be cut and flown. The colour scheme uses blue, red, white, yellow, with each shade specified to particular Pantone or RGB values for official reproduction.
Colour palette
| Colour | Name | Common symbolism |
|---|---|---|
| Blue | blue | Frequently symbolises sky, sea, freedom, vigilance or perseverance. |
| Red | red | Often signifies courage, sacrifice, revolution or the blood of those who fought for the nation. |
| White | white | Commonly represents peace, purity, honesty or snow-capped landscapes. |
| Yellow | yellow | Usually denotes wealth, the sun, gold reserves, or a generous spirit. |
Symbolism & heraldry
A blue field bearing a stylised emblem of ten yellow rice stalks bound together by a red ring on a white circle. The ten stalks are the ten member states; the binding signifies friendship and solidarity; rice is the staple crop common across Southeast Asia. Blue stands for peace and stability, red for courage and dynamism, white for purity, yellow for prosperity.
Heraldic elements on the Flag of ASEAN — bands, charges, emblems or stars — each carry meaning agreed at the moment of the flag’s adoption. Re-readings happen across generations: a colour or a symbol that began with one meaning often picks up further layers as the country’s history unfolds.
Adoption & history
The current flag was adopted in 1997. It is credited to ASEAN Secretariat. Earlier banners flown by reflected the politics of their day; each redesign typically marked a moment of independence, regime change or constitutional reform. The current flag was chosen, debated and codified through the country’s official channels and is now protected by flag law.
Etiquette & protocol
The Flag of ASEAN should be flown with respect: never allowed to touch the ground, never used as drapery for ceremonies it was not made for, and lowered or removed at sundown unless illuminated. When flown alongside other national flags, it takes precedence on home soil and is hoisted first and lowered last. On days of national mourning, the flag is flown at half-mast in line with directives from the head of state. These conventions are common to most nations and are usually written into the flag’s founding statute.
Specifications
| Field | Value | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Country | — | |
| Continent | Asia | — |
| ISO alpha-2 | 2-letter code | |
| ISO alpha-3 | 3-letter code | |
| Adopted | 1997 | year of current design |
| Proportion | 2:3 | height : length |
| Colours | blue, red, white, yellow | — |
| Designer | ASEAN Secretariat | — |
| Emoji | Unicode codepoint sequence |
Did you know?
Earlier versions of the emblem showed six rice stalks (the founding membership of the original 1967 bloc); the design was updated to ten when membership was completed in 1999 with Cambodia's accession.
About the organisation
ASEAN was founded in 1967. Its headquarters are in Jakarta, Indonesia.
Member states
ASEAN has 10 member states. Membership current as of 2024-01.
