Asia-Pacific Business Leaders To Urge APEC Economies to Adapt to New Business Realities in Promoting Regional Economic Integration
Issued by the APEC Business Advisory Council
Amidst continuing uncertainty in the global economy, business leaders of the Asia-Pacific region urge APEC economies to stay the course in deepening regional economic integration as the means to promote resilience and sustained economic growth and recovery in the region even while adapting to new business realities.
This was the focus of the 3rd meeting of the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC) held in Kyoto where businesspeople prepared their recommendations for APEC Leaders to address current regional economic concerns.
“Regional economic integration provides the means to deliver APEC’s hopes for economic recovery and sustained growth, job creation and financial stability”, said Wishnu Wardhana, ABAC Chair for 2013. “APEC should pursue an ambitious agenda that encompasses more open trade and investment, not only in goods but in services as well, enhanced connectivity including hard and soft infrastructure, and deeper and integrated financial markets.”
To better achieve these goals, Wardhana said that APEC economies should take into account the evolving ways that governments and businesses operate. Global value networks and supply chains are the predominant business models in which APEC economies lead the world.
“Direct government involvement in the markets has been gradually decreasing while at the same time, the outsourcing of traditional public services including the provision of hard and soft infrastructure has been increasing exponentially,” he explained. “These circumstances have led us to recommend that specific actions be taken to support this development, which has created greater efficiency, generated jobs and helped promote inclusivity all across the region.”
ABAC’s recommendations in this regard include substantive and consistent progress in the various pathways leading to the establishment of the Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific (FTAAP); the initiation of a new services agenda in recognition of its being a key component of the value chain and which can determine an economy’s competitiveness as a result; and a multi-disciplinary and systematic approach to connectivity that includes the adoption of global data standards and a comprehensive system to infrastructure development in which attracting foreign direct investments is a key element.
“Inclusivity and sustainability are also critical elements to building resilience,” Wardhana continued. “We urge APEC economies to take actions to grow and strengthen small, medium and micro-enterprises and to enhance the participation of women in the economy as part of their inclusivity agenda.
Another development which ABAC believes APEC economies should recognize is the growing synergy between the government and business sector in the planning and delivery of economic benefits to the public. ABAC has been pushing for policy partnerships through dialogues and joint meetings. The public-private policy partnerships on food security promises a way forward to the long-delayed addressing of this critical issue at a comprehensive level. The Asia-Pacific Financial Forum (APFF) which will provide a regional platform for public-private sector collaboration to help accelerate the development of integrated financial markets will shortly be launched. Meanwhile, the Asia-Pacific Infrastructure Partnership (APIP) has held dialogues with six economies with the object of improving the environment for Public-Private Partnerships (PPP) in infrastructure financing and development.
Recognizing the need to enhance collaboration with Latin-American Region, ABAC agreed to grant observer status to Colombia at its Regional Economic Integration Working Group (REIWG) meetings.
“We look forward to our meeting with APEC Leaders in Bali to share our views and seek theirs on how to move forward the regional economic integration agenda,” Wardhana concluded.
About ABAC
The APEC Business Advisory Council is the official voice of business in APEC. ABAC brings together business leaders from each of the APEC’s 21 economies who are appointed by their respective heads of government. They have been tasked by APEC Leaders to identify policy priorities and key concerns of the business sector in achieving closer economic cooperation. Pak Wishnu Wardhana, Director of Indika Energy, one of Indonesia’s largest energy companies, is the chair of ABAC 2013.
For more information, please go to www.abaconline.org
Indonesia in APEC
In 1994, Indonesia became the birthplace of the APEC Bogor Goals: liberalized trade and investment by 2010 for industrialized economies and by 2020 for the developing economies. Almost 20 years after, Indonesia has taken significant part in contributing to the development, maintaining the commitment towards the cause.
This year's APEC CEO Summit's theme of "Towards Resilience and Growth: Reshaping Priorities for Global Economy" could not have been more apt as Indonesia again is honored to play host to APEC.
Indonesia bounced back from the 1998 economic crisis to currently become the 16th largest economy and is an emerging and growth-leading economy (EAGLE), with a projected growth to become the 7th largest in 20 years' time.
The Host Economy , Indonesia
Indonesia at a glance
Situated between the Indian and Pacific Ocean, Indonesia is the largest archipelago in the world. Its surface area of 1,905 thousand square kilometers is comprised of more than 17,000 islands, lending Indonesia the nickname of "The Emerald of the Equator".Indonesia at a glance
Indonesia has 34 provinces, with Jakarta as its capital city.
Indonesia's geographic location has blessed it with a rich landscape, from fertile rice lands in Java and Bali to the luxuriant rainforests of Sumatra, Kalimantan and Sulawesi, to the savannah grasslands of the Nusa Tenggara islands to snow-capped peaks of West Papua. Indonesia is home to more than 28,000 flora species from tiny rare orchid to giant Raflesia flower. It is also one of the most diverse variants of fauna species, including the endangered orangutans of Sumatera and Borneo, the unique giant lizard of Komodo, the horned Java Rhinoceros and Sumatera tigers.
Currently a dynamic USD 1.1 trillion economy, Indonesia reached an economic growth of 6.5% in 2011—the highest in 15 years. Its Foreign Direct Investment was USD 19.5 billion that same year. Approximately 60% of Indonesia's GDP comes from domestic consumption, cushioning Indonesia from global economic uncertainty. Meanwhile, investment growth has reached 20.53% in 2011.
Opening its doors for trade and investment even wider, Indonesia's regions are grouped into six economic corridors where each is specialized in areas where it has competitive advantages—from natural resources, industrialization and services, mining and energy reserves, agriculture fisheries, plantations, oil and gas, to tourism.
The Host Economy , APEC CEO 2013 , October 5 - 7 , 2013
The Host Economy , APEC CEO 2013 , October 5 - 7 , 2013
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