2013_APECatAGlance

7/28/2019 2013_APECatAGlance

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What areAPECs goals?

APEC is a unique orum,

operating on the basis

o open dialogue and

respect or the views oall participants. In APEC,

all economies have an

equal say and decision-

making is reached by

consensus. There are no

binding commitments;

compliance is achieved

through discussion andmutual support in the orm

o economic and technical

cooperation.

In 1989, the ounding members o APEC outlined three

objectives:

Todevelopandstrengthenthemultilateral

trading system;

Toincreasetheinterdependenceand

prosperity o member economies; and

Topromotesustainableeconomicgrowth.

APECs vision was urther dened in 1994, when APEC Leaders

committed to the Bogor Goals o ree and open trade and

investment by urther reducing barriers in the region and by

promoting the ree fow o goods, services and capital among

APEC economies.

Recognising the diering levels o development among

member economies, two broad timetables to achieve the

Bogor Goals were set: 2010 or industrialized economies,

and 2020 or developing economies. The Bogor Goals are a

voluntary commitment, based on good aith and a pledge o

best endeavour.

In 2010, APEC conducted an assessment to determine what

progress has been made on the goal o ree and open trade

and investment. The results showed that APEC economies

have taken concerted action and progressed in a wide arrayo areas. Average taris in the region have allen rom 16.9

percent when APEC was established in 1989 to 5.7 percent in

2011. Non-tari barriers have also been substantially reduced

across APEC economies. Most o those are WTO-consistent

measures.

APEC also works to create an environment or the secure

and ecient movement o goods, services and people across

borders in the region through policy alignment and economic

and technical cooperation. This cooperation also helps to

ensure that the people o the APEC region have access to

training and technology to take advantage o more open trade

and investment.


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What isAsia-Pacifc EconomicCooperation?

Which economies aremembers o APEC?

The Asia-Pacic Economic Cooperation (APEC)

orum was established in 1989 to leverage on

the growing interdependence o Asia-Pacic

economies. APEC aims to create greater prosperity

or the people o the region by promoting balanced,

inclusive, sustainable, innovative and secure

growth and by accelerating regional economic

integration.

APEC: Cooperation and Consensus

APEC is a unique orum, operating on the basis

o open dialogue and respect or the views o

all participants. In APEC, all economies have an

equal say and decision-making is reached by

consensus. There are no binding commitments;

and compliance is achieved through discussion

and mutual support in the orm o economic and

technical cooperation.

APEC has grown to become one o the worlds

most important regional groupings. Its 21 member

economies are home to more than 2.8 billion

people and represent approximately 54 percent o

world real GDP and 44 percent o world trade.

APEC is the most economically dynamic region in

the world. Since APECs inception, members have

experienced average annual GDP growth o 3.5

percent, versus 2.9 percent growth in non-APEC

economies (on a purchasing power parity basis).

The orum constantly adapts to allow members to

deal with important new challenges to the regions

economic well-being. This includes planning or

pandemics, countering terrorism, addressing

climate change and implementing structural

reorm.


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How doesAPEC operate?

How do the peopleo the Asia-Pacicbeneft rom APECs work?

APEC operates as a cooperative, multilateral economic and trade

orum. Member economies take individual and collective actions to

open their markets and promote economic growth. These actions

are discussed annually at a series o meetings o Senior Ocials,

Ministers and nally, by APEC Economic Leaders.

APECs policy direction is provided by the 21 Leaders o APECs

21 member economies. Strategic recommendations provided by

APEC Ministers, APEC Senior Ocials and the APEC Business

Advisory Council, are considered by Leaders as part o this

process.

APECs working level activities and projects are guided by APECSenior Ocials and undertaken by our core committees:

CommitteeonTradeandInvestment

SeniorOfcialsMeeting-SteeringCommitteeonEconomic

and Technical Cooperation

EconomicCommittee

BudgetandManagementCommittee

Sub-Committees, Experts Groups, Working Groups and Task

Forces carry out the activities led by these our core committees.

The APEC Policy Support Unit provides research, analysis andevaluation capabilities to assist in the implementation o APECs

agenda.

The APEC process is supported by a permanent Secretariat based

in Singapore.

APEC enjoys solid economic growth. The region has beneted

rom an increase in GDP, resulting in more job opportunities

and training programmes, greater employment, stronger social

saety nets, and reduced poverty. Consumers in APEC membereconomies enjoy a lower cost o living because reduced trade

barriers and a more economically competitive region helps to

lower prices or goods and services that everyone needs on a daily

basis, rom ood to clothes to shelter. More broadly, citizens in the

APEC region also benet rom APECs anti-corruption and human

and ood security related initiatives.

Improving the business

environment by removing

barriers between

economies


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How doesAPEC beneft theeconomies o the region?

How isAPEC structured?

Members are working together to sustain

economic growth through a commitment to ree

and open trade, investment liberalisation andacilitation, and structural reorm. Recognising the

needs o business in the region, members have

progressively reduced taris and other barriers

to trade, making the fow o goods, services and

people easier and less costly. Actions taken aid

economies to grow, create jobs and increase

international trade and investment.

Highlights

Leaders,Ministers,governmentadministrators

and business people come together regularly

or active inormation exchange and dialogue

that help promote cooperation and policy

development.

APECworkstoalignstandards regimeswith

international norms to reduce barriers to trade,

to acilitate innovation and new technologies,

and to oer consumers better prices and

greater choice.

APEC works to harmonise, standardise, and

simpliy customs procedures.

APECimplementstechnicalassistanceprojects

which develop skills and strengthen economic

inrastructure.

Over100,000travellersusetheAPECBusiness

Travel Card (ABTC) throughout the year. This

scheme provides bona de requent business

travellers with pre-approved visa clearance and

ast-track entry through special APEC lanes

at major international airports in the region. All

APEC members now participate in the scheme

18 ully participating and three transitionalmembers.

Makingtravelsafer,facilitatingfasterprocessing

o legitimate travellers while reducing

opportunities or unauthorised and improperly

documented persons to cross borders.

Promoting the sae and

ecient movement o goods,

services and people through

the Asia-Pacic region


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What isAPECs scope o work?

Trade and InvestmentLiberalisation

Trade and investment liberalisation ocuses on

opening markets and reducing tari and non-tari

barriers to trade and investment. Since APEC was

established in 1989, average taris in the regionhave declined by close to 70 percent.

Another step that APEC has taken to promote

regional economic integration is the development

o model measures or regional trade agreements

(RTAs) and ree trade agreements (FTAs). APEC is

also taking concrete steps toward the realisation

o a Free Trade Area o the Asia-Pacic.

In addition, APEC continues to support themultilateral trading system and WTO-based

negotiations through strong and unambiguous

political commitments and a range o practical and

concrete actions.

Business Facilitation

Business acilitation helps importers and exporters

in the Asia-Pacic conduct business more

eciently. The costs o production are reduced,

leading to cheaper goods and services, increased

trade, and more employment opportunities.

Traditionally the ocus has been on reducing

business transaction costs. APECs original Trade

Facilitation Action plan reached its target o a

region-wide reduction in costs at the border by

5 percent between 2002 and 2006. A urther 5

percent reduction was achieved between 2007

and 2010, which saved businesses in the APEC

region a total o US$58.7 billion. An InvestmentFacilitation Action Plan has also been implemented.

Over time the APEC agenda has broadened to

include a complementary ocus on behind-the-

border and across-the-border barriers. APEC

addresses behind-the-border impediments

through its structural reorm agenda which APEC

Leaders endorsed in 2004. The agenda ocuses on

ve priority areas: regulatory reorm, competition

policy, public sector governance, corporate

governance and strengthening economic and

legal inrastructure.

In 2010, APEC Leaders endorsed the APEC

New Strategy or Structural Reorm that aims to

promote balanced and sustainable growth byostering transparency, competition and better

unctioning markets in the Asia-Pacic. In addition,

this new strategy emphasizes a social dimension

that includes enhancing opportunities or women

and pressing or more education and SME

development.

APECs work on logistics and transport networks

aimed at enhancing physical connectivity across-

the-border is being undertaken under the ambit o

the APEC Supply Chain Connectivity Initiative, withthe goal o achieving an APEC-wide 10 percent

improvement in supply-chain perormance in

terms o time, cost and uncertainty by 2015.

Economic and TechnicalCooperation

Economic and technical cooperation comprises

training and other cooperative activities to build

skills and transer knowledge to assist all APECmembers so that they can participate in the

regional economy and reach the APEC goals o

ree and open trade and investment in the region.

ECOTECH programmes are particularly important

or developing member economies to build up

their capacity and improve competitiveness and

productivity, which improves the standard o living

or its citizens.

APECs activities are ocused on three key areas:

TradeandInvestmentLiberalisationBusinessFacilitation

EconomicandTechnicalCooperation

EconoOver the last ew y

The commercial imand terrorist attackmeeting these challat ensuring trade aeconomies o the re

Another challenge global ree trade. APthat such agreemen

genuinely pave thesteps toward the re


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How does APEC put itsgoals and vision into action?In order to meet APECs Bogor Goals o ree andopen trade and investment in the Asia-Pacic,

APEC member economies ollow the strategicroadmap agreed by APEC Economic Leaders inOsaka, Japan in 1995. This roadmap is known asthe Osaka Action Agenda.

Osaka Action Agenda

The Osaka Action Agenda provides a rameworkor meeting the Bogor Goals through trade andinvestment liberalisation, business acilitation andsectoral activities, underpinned by policy dialoguesand economic and technical cooperation. As parto this ramework, General Principles have been

dened or APEC member economies as theyproceed through the APEC liberalisation andacilitation process.

The ollowing General Principles are provided inthe Osaka Action Agenda and are applied to theentire APEC liberalisation and acilitation process: Comprehensiveness - address all impediments

to achieve the long-term goal o ree and opentrade.

WTO-consistency - measures undertaken inthe context o the APEC Action Agenda areconsistent with the principles o the World

Trade Organization (WTO). Comparability - APEC member economies

endeavour to have comparable trade andinvestment liberalisation and acilitation, takinginto account the general levels achieved byeach APEC economy.

Non-discrimination - reductions in barriers totrade achieved through APEC are available toall APEC member economies and non-APECeconomies.

Transparency - the laws, regulations andadministrative procedures in all APEC member

economies which aect the fow o goods,services and capital among APEC membereconomies are transparent.

Standstill - APEC member economies donot take measures which have the eect oincreasing levels o protection.

Simultaneous start, continuous process anddifferentiated timetables - APEC membereconomies began simultaneously the process

o liberalisation, acilitation and cooperation andcontinuously contribute to the long-term goal o

ree and open trade and investment. Flexibility- APEC member economies deal with

the liberalisation and acilitation process in afexible manner, taking into account dieringlevels o economic development.

Cooperation - economic and technicalcooperation contributing to liberalisation andacilitation is actively pursued.

Individual Action Plans

APEC member economies report progress

towards achieving the ree and open trade andinvestment goals through Individual and CollectiveAction Plans, submitted to APEC on a regularbasis. Individual Action Plans (IAPs) contain achapter or each specied policy area and reportthe steps that each member is taking to ull theobjectives set out in the Osaka Action Agenda oreach action area.

Reporting is based on the ollowing areas: Tariffs Non-tariffmeasures Services

Investment Standardsandconformance Customsprocedures Intellectualpropertyrights Competitionpolicy Governmentprocurement Deregulation/regulatoryreview WTOobligations(includingrulesoforigin) Disputemediation Mobilityofbusinesspeople Informationgatheringandanalysis Transparency Regional Trade Agreements / Free Trade

Agreements(RTAs/FTAs)

Collective Action Plans

Collective Action Plans (CAPs) detail the jointactions o all APEC member economies in thesame issue areas outlined in the Osaka ActionAgenda. CAPs are the compass by which APECcharts its course towards the ultimate objective oree trade and investment.

Capacity Building

Aimed at enhancing economic growth andprosperity in the region, projects are a vital part othe APEC process. APEC projects build capacityin key priority areas identied by Leaders calls oraction. Targeting specic policy areas, projectsare conducted through seminars, workshops,publications and research. Projects typicallyocus on building human capacity, strengtheningeconomic inrastructure and ensuring security orthe region. The ultimate goal o all projects is toadvance trade and investment liberalisation andacilitation.

ic Challengesrs new threats to the economic well-being o the region have emerged.ct on member economies o devastating natural disasters, pandemics,reinorces the connection between human security and trade. APEC isges through a range o cooperative and capacity building activities aimedeconomic development continues, while saeguarding the people and

ion.

ing APEC is to ensure that sub-regional trade agreements contribute toC has developed model measures or RTAs and FTAs, which help ensureare high quality, comprehensive, consistent with WTO requirements, and

ay or the realisation o the Bogor Goals. APEC is also taking concretesation o a Free Trade Area o the Asia-Pacic.


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Who participates in theAPEC process?

How do Iget involved with APEC?

How can I keep up-to-date withAPEC progress?

APEC recognises that strong and vibrant

economies are not built by governments alone,

but by partnerships between government and

its key stakeholders including the business

sector, industry, academia, policy and research

institutions, and other interest groups. APEC

actively involves these key stakeholders in the

work o the orum.

Business

APEC Economic Leaders meet annually with the

APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC), which

comprises high-level business people rom all

21 APEC member economies. ABAC presents

recommendations to Leaders and advises

APEC ocials on business sector priorities and

concerns. APEC is the only multilateral body that

gives business a seat at the table, not just or

consultation, but as a partner.

At the working level, representatives rom the

private sector are invited to join many APEC

industry dialogues, working groups and expert

groups. This process provides an important

opportunity or industry to provide direct input into

APECs ongoing work.

Academic and ResearchInstitutions

Through the APEC Study Centres Consortium(ASCC) APEC member economies engage

academic and research institutions in the

APEC process. The ASCC acilitates cultural

and intellectual exchanges in the region and

undertakes collaborative, interdisciplinary and

policy-relevant research rom an independent and

long-term perspective.

There are APEC Study Centres in most APEC

member economies, comprising some 100

universities, research centres and centres oacademic excellence.

Academics and research institutions also

participate at the APEC working level through

meetings, seminars and other activities.

APEC Observers

APEC has three Ocial Observers: the Association

o Southeast Asian Nations, the Pacic Economic

Cooperation Council and the Pacic Islands

Forum.

I you are interested in participating in the APEC

process, you can apply to attend APEC meetings

or seminars. Contact the APEC Secretariat or visit

the website or urther inormation.

Views can also be expressed about APECs work

to your economys APEC oce. Enquiries can

also be directed to contacts within APEC member

economies. A complete list o these contacts isavailable on the APEC website.

Keep up-to-date with the latest APEC news by

regularly accessing the APEC website at www.

apec.org, join us on Facebook and ollow us on

Twitter. The APEC Secretariat also produces

the APEC Bulletin a ree online newsletter

that provides inormation on the key elements

o APECs agenda, current activities, new

publications, upcoming events and more. Simply

ll out your details on the APEC website and the

latest edition o the Bulletin will be emailed to you.

Contact UsFor general inormation about APEC, please contact:

APEC Secretariat,35HengMuiKengTerrace,Singapore119616TelephoneNumber:(65)68919600FacsimileNumber:(65)68919690

Website:www.apec.orgFacebook:www.facebook.com/APECnewsTwitter:www.twitter.com/@followAPEC

GeneralInquiries:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]

Copyright 2013 APEC Secretariat APEC#212-SE-05.1 ISSN1793-2440Cover: Sparks of progress by Nikki Victoriano from the Philippines

2013_APECatAGlance

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