To significantly contribute to the attainment of the goals and aspirations of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) through inter-parliamentary cooperation, ASEAN parliamentarians formed the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Organization or AIPO on 2nd September 1977. In a move towards establishing a more effective and closely integrated institution, AIPO  transformed itself from an organization into an assembly in 2007 and changed its name to the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly or AIPA.