Founded in 1978, AFAA has representations in 15 Asian nations (Japan, Korea, Taipei, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines, Indonesia, Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Pakistan and UAE). Its primary objectives are to unify all Asian associations involved in the various aspects of marketing, advertising and media and upgrade the standards, ethics, and practices in all segments of the communication industry and to bring about a meaningful contribution from communication activities to both regional and national socio-economic development. Under its auspices, AdAsia (biennially), Adfest (annually), and the Asia Pacific Media Forum (biennially) are held.