APEC: THE ROAD TO 2015 - CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES
←
→
Page content transcription
If your browser does not render page correctly, please read the page content below
Page 1
APEC: THE ROAD TO 2015 – CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES
No. 13 Series 2013
APEC: THE ROAD TO 2015 –
CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES
DORIS MAGSAYSAY-HO
JAIME AUGUSTO ZOBEL DE AYALA
ABAC PHILIPPINES: THE VOICE OF PHILIPPINE BUSINESS WITHIN THE APEC PROCESS
DORIS MAGSAYSAY-HO
Member, ABAC Philippines
President and CEO, A. Magsaysay Inc.
WE THOUGHT IT WOULD be important to have this discus-
sion as we embark on the next twenty-four crucial months
leading up to 2015, a year when we will not only host APEC
but also the time when the economic integration among
ASEAN economies will take place.
APEC is a forum of 21 economies representing 42% of the
world’s population which covers 43% of the world’s land
area. It accounts for about 55% of world GDP and about
44% of global trade. There are many countries that want to
join APEC like India, Colombia, and many others, but mem-
bership appears to be closed for now.
APEC sees itself not as a group of countries but as a
group of economies—with economic, not political goals.
Unlike ASEAN, APEC operates on non-binding commit-
ments and open dialogue with the goal to strengthen and
MBC IMAGES/ R. DELROSARIO
remove barriers to trade, investment, and supply chains for
sustained regional inclusive growth.
APEC was established in 1989 in response to the grow-
ing interdependence of Asia-Pacific economies and the
emergence of regional trade blocs in other parts of the
world. In 1994, APEC leaders adopted the Bogor Goals that
aim for free and open trade and investment in the Asia-Pa-
Doris Magsaysay-Ho
cific by 2010 for industrialized economies and by 2020 for
developing economies. On 10 December 2013, Ms. Ho and Mr. Zobel de
Ayala were the speakers at a special membership
THE APEC BUSINESS ADVISORY COUNCIL meeting of the Makati Business Club at the
In 1995, APEC established a business advisory body named Mandarin Oriental Hotel, Makati City. Published
the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC), composed of here are excerpts from the keynote speeches.
three business executives from each member economy to
www.mbc.com.ph
Page 2
APEC: THE ROAD TO 2015 – CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES
provide the business perspective 42.4% to 45.2% and the percent- Business Travel Card, which pro-
on specific areas of APEC coop- age of product lines with tariffs vides substantial time and cost
eration. The Philippine govern- equal or greater than 10% de- savings to business people by
ment appointed myself, Jaime creased from 16% to 14.7%. allowing visa-free travel and ex-
Augusto Zobel de Ayala and Tony The reduction of trade barri- press lane transit at airports in
Tan Caktiong, with Bill Luz serv- ers has played a significant role participating economies.
ing as an alternate member, to in the growth and expansion of APEC is also working on ad-
represent the Philippine business trade in the region. Intra-APEC dressing behind-the-border barri-
community in ABAC. We attend merchandise trade has in- ers to trade through its Structural
four meetings a year, with the Reform Agenda, which focuses
fourth meeting being the Lead- “Intra-APEC merchandise on reforming domestic policies
ers’ Summit where we submit our trade has increased six- and institutions that adversely
recommendations to the Leaders fold since 1989... reflecting affect the operation of markets,
and Ministers. and the capacity of businesses
that almost all Asia-Pacific
Before each ABAC meeting, to access markets and operate
we meet with the various busi- economies are more inte- efficiently.
ness association leaders and grated or dependent on APEC’s Economic and Tech-
government departments, espe- Asia-Pacific markets” nical Cooperation activities are
cially the DFA, to seek their com- designed to build capacity and
ments. We work with our very dy- creased six-fold since 1989, now skills in APEC member economies
namic APEC Senior Official Lullah accounting for 67.2% of APEC’s to enable both the individuals
Del Rosario. total merchandise exports and and institutions to participate
We attend and speak before 65% of APEC’s total merchandise more fully in the regional econ-
APEC Working Groups to advo- imports, reflecting that almost all omy. Since 1993, around 1,600
cate for business issues we are Asia-Pacific economies are more projects have been initiated with
championing—in my case, on integrated or dependent on APEC funding. These projects fo-
Trade in Services and Mobility, as Asia-Pacific markets, with Singa- cus on five medium-term priori-
well as Women and the Econo- pore and Hong Kong leading the ties: Regional Economic Integra-
my. We also commission studies pack of the most integrated. tion, Human Security, Structural
and surveys to guide us in our APEC’s work on Business Fa- Reform, Inclusive Growth, and
discussions. MBC serves as the cilitation reportedly reduced Sustainable Growth.
ABAC Philippines Secretariat and the cost of business transactions In 2000, APEC set a goal of tri-
provides ABAC Philippines tech- across the region by 5% between pling internet usage in the region
nical assistance and administra- 2002 and 2006, which was further and that goal has now been
tive support. reduced by another 5% in real achieved. It is now focusing ef-
terms between 2007 and 2010. forts on achieving the goal of
THE APEC PILLARS This represents total savings for universal access to broadband in
APEC focuses on three main business of $58.7 billion. the APEC region by 2015. A par-
pillars of activity: Trade and In- Other APEC initiatives that help ticular focus is to reduce the dig-
vestment Liberalization, Business facilitate trade include the intro- ital divide between industrialized
Facilitation, and Economic and duction of electronic, paperless and developing economies to
Technical Cooperation. systems. For example, the Single provide citizens and businesses
APEC’s work on Trade and Window system for customs was of the region with access to ICT
Investment Liberalization sig- designed to allow importers and technologies, education, and
nificantly reduced the region’s exporters to submit information training.
Most Favored Nation average to government once through a
tariff from 16.9% to the present single entry point. ABAC RECOMMENDATIONS
5.4%. The percentage of zero-tar- Another significant achieve- The key message ABAC relayed
iff product lines increased from ment is the creation of the APEC to Leaders this year is the impor-
tance for APEC to have a more
About The Speaker ambitious agenda on its trade,
Doris Magsaysay-Ho investment, and services liberali-
zation targets, especially with the
Doris Magsaysay-Ho serves as the President and CEO at A.Magsaysay
Inc., which is involved in shipping, human resources, and business process
notable lack of progress in the
outsourcing services. She is currently a Trustee of the Makati Business Club WTO Doha negotiations.
and an appointed Philippine representative to the APEC Business Advisory ABAC’s recommendations are
Council (ABAC). Ms. Ho received a Masters degree in Industrial Design the following:
from Pratt Institute, New York in 1975 and attended the Manhattanville • Encourage infrastructure in-
College New York from 1969 to 1973. vestment, calling on APEC gov-
Page 3
APEC: THE ROAD TO 2015 – CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES
ernments to give special atten- To achieve competitiveness, tered into bilateral free trade
tion to slow pace of PPPs and the services firms, like goods firms, agreements to achieve access
crucial role of major infrastruc- are seeking to go up the value to desired markets. ABAC, during
ture investments across APEC to chain to focus on core compe- the Chile year, introduced the
meet the region’s growth targets tencies and outsource all the idea of the Free Trade Agree-
and connectivity. rest. As Stanley Chia of ACER ment of the Asia Pacific (FTAAP)
computers demonstrated, the which has now sprouted as an
• Food security. APEC and ABAC highest value-added services idea that can be achieved un-
have been working on a com- activities such as R&D/innovation der different pathways.
prehensive roadmap towards or global logistics, increasingly One is the 12-member Trans
regional food security which dominate the value of traded -Pacific Partnership (TPP) which
was prepared by the newly-cre- merchandise. As a starting point was started by Brunei, Chile,
ated APEC Policy Partnership in liberalizing Trade in Services, New Zealand and Singapore,
for Food Security. Two of the ABAC urges APEC to improve the and as of August 2013, is under
proposed action plans include region’s official statistics on ser- negotiation by these economies
reducing food losses through vices, remove behind-the-border and Australia, Canada, Japan,
the effective use of cold chain regulatory barriers, and address Malaysia, Mexico, Peru, the Unit-
technology and promoting the mobility issues. ed States and Vietnam. Another
use of international food safety pathway to the FTAAP is the Re-
standards. ABAC IN 2014 gional Comprehensive Econom-
Next year, China will be hosting ic Partnership (RCEP), which is
• Ensure energy security, cou- APEC 2014. Under China’s lead- composed of the ASEAN 10, Chi-
pled with policies that facilitate ership, ABAC’s work on Regional na, Japan, South Korea, India,
the development of renewable Economic Integration will con- Australia, and New Zealand.
energy infrastructure, to meet tinue to focus on preventing any As we enter the next 24 cru-
APEC’s green growth targets. backsliding into protectionism. cial months towards 2015, it is
ABAC will work on initiatives for becoming extremely crucial for
• Promote the growth of SMMEs investment liberalization and fa- the business community to ask
through better access to fi- cilitation and, importantly, will ourselves how we can benefit
nance, such as easing restric- further develop the new services from and what we need to do
tions in risk capital from venture agenda. to prepare for the regional inte-
capital and angel investors, tax ABAC will also focus on food gration taking place around us.
credits and matching funds, and security, energy security, green In what areas of manufac-
access to international markets. growth and environmental goods turing, agriculture, mining, and
and services, health, and sustain- other export sectors are we de-
• Strengthen the region’s finan- able economic growth. ABAC termined to produce and com-
cial markets and other recom- will advocate for wide access to pete? What markets do we aim
mendations. SMME financing, the internation- to access?
alization of SMMEs, and the pro- How do we leverage our
In 2011, the Philippines and motion of active participation great human capital to bene-
Hong Kong commissioned a and contribution of women to the fit from Trade in Services? What
study on Trade in Services, which economy. barriers, both within and across
ABAC Philippines sees as a great We will also continue to push borders, hold us back?
opportunity for our economy. for regional financial system inte- How do we work together—
Our follow-up study showed that gration, enhancing FDI and long- both business and policy mak-
this sector accounts for 67% of term savings in infrastructure, and ers—and other stakeholders to
APEC GDP. finding ways to meet the chal- ensure that every Filipino ben-
Trade in Services is not well lenges of urbanization efits from the APEC and ASEAN
understood and can be charac- Finally, ABAC work on infra- initiatives?
terized as a “value chain” rather structure and connectivity shall
than a “supply chain.” The con- elevate the issues of accelerating
cept of value-added is as rele- infrastructure development, fa-
vant to services activities as it is cilitating infrastructure financing,
to merchandise production. In enhancing capacity building for
new business models, enterprises regional connectivity, and build-
are outsourcing not only the as- ing effective global value chains.
sembly of goods, but also many
increasingly fragmented servic- PATHWAYS TOWARDS FTAAP
es-related tasks. Most APEC economies have en-
Page 4
APEC: THE ROAD TO 2015 – CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES
tween businessmen and Ministers
APEC HOSTING: THE PHILIPPINES IN THE GLOBAL SPOTLIGHT
and Leaders can lead to more
JAIME AUGUSTO ZOBEL DE AYALA meaningful progress in a world of
Member, ABAC Philippines
significant change. We should ask
Chairman and CEO, Ayala Corporation
ourselves: what do we bring to the
ership role across a broad range table that will have significant im-
of activities and over a wide spec- pact on APEC and our country?
trum of policy matters. Second, it
provides a platform from which to COMMUNICATING REFORMS AND
present the government’s reform ACCELERATING INFRASTRUCTURE
programs and accomplishments. APEC 2015 provides the govern-
It also brings significant exposure ment an opportunity to commu-
from a tourism, investment promo- nicate its reform program. Aside
tion, and overall media coverage from the official meetings, APEC
point of view, creating opportuni- has many side meetings and social
ties to promote the country and events, which gives a chance to
generate new business. Third, it speak of or show reforms in a varie-
provides the impetus to acceler- ty of ways. These events should not
ate infrastructure programs which be underestimated as a means of
support both hosting and long-
MBC IMAGES/ R. DELROSARIO
reaching out to audiences.
term requirements of the country. Hosting and chairing APEC
And fourth, it provides an oppor- entails more than just the Lead-
tunity for the country to project its ers’ Summit. In the run-up to the
economic policy agenda and in- Summit, a series of meetings take
terests in international fora. place from the Trade, Foreign,
and Finance Ministers’ meetings
Jaime Augusto Zobel De Ayala INTERNATIONAL LEADERSHIP to various other Ministerial Meet-
The Philippines last hosted the ings, Senior Official Meetings, and
AS YOU KNOW, THE APEC Summit APEC Summit in 1996 under Working Group meetings. These
rotates around the different econo- then-president Fidel Ramos. It was meetings are capped off by the
mies, taking turns chairing and host- the fourth such summit ever held annual APEC Economic Leaders’
ing the annual Leaders’ Meeting. and the Philippines used the op- Meeting in November.
The Philippines will serve as chair- portunity to introduce changes to Aside from government meet-
man and host of the 2015 APEC APEC that have all become reg- ings, there are also private sec-
Economic Leaders’ Meeting. More ular features of the annual meet- tor meetings: the ABAC meeting,
importantly, the Philippines will ing. The ABAC was convened for APEC CEO Summit, the SME Sum-
host a string of major international the first time in 1996 at the request mit, the Dialogue with Leaders,
meetings over the next four years, of the Leaders. The Philippine busi- other industry or trade meetings,
illustrating the turnaround in inter- ness community also organized and even a youth-oriented meet-
national and investor awareness the first-ever APEC Business Forum, ing known as Voices of the Future.
that the country has undergone in which became the predecessor of Collectively, these run a full
recent years. today’s APEC CEO Summit. 12 months from December 2014
In 2014, we will host the World Prior to 1996, CEOs did not have to November 2015. For 2015, the
Economic Forum East Asia Summit. access to Ministers, let alone Lead- APEC National Organizing Coun-
In 2015, we will chair and host the ers. Under Philippine chairmanship, cil (APEC-NOC), of which I am a
APEC Economic Leaders’ Meet- Leaders were suddenly meeting member, has decided to spread
ing. In 2016, the ASEAN Tourism Fo- businessmen at the CEO Summit, these meetings to 10 cities across
rum will be held here, and in 2017, and ABAC members and busi- the country—Manila, Tagay-
the ASEAN Summit will be held in ness delegates were holding joint tay, Subic, Clark, Boracay, Iloi-
the Philippines, marking the 50th meetings with Trade and Finance lo, Bacolod, Cebu, Legazpi, and
anniversary of ASEAN. Ministers. This access has eventual- Davao. This was part of our inclu-
Viewed in this context, how ly blossomed into an institutional- sive growth strategy to widely dis-
should we prepare for internation- ized set of meetings so that APEC perse infrastructure development.
al meetings like APEC and how Leaders and Ministers can get reg- Imagine the impact these tar-
can we take advantage of the ular policy inputs from the business geted public investments in air-
opportunities it presents? community. ports, roads, medical facilities, and
The APEC Summit presents four In 2015, we should take the op- convention centers can bring, es-
opportunities: First, it provides the portunity to redefine this level of pecially when coupled with pri-
Philippines an international lead- access so that the interaction be- vate sector investments in hotels,
Page 5
APEC: THE ROAD TO 2015 – CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES
transport, and other tourism-and and advocates for better post-har-
convention-related facilities. To- vest practice and higher, common
gether with other ancillary services food standards so economies can
that are needed, these meetings become more food secure.
can help jumpstart or boost the The fourth area is in Trade in Ser-
tours and convention business in vices and Labor Mobility. People are
some places. The meetings also our most valuable asset in the Phil-
bring visitors and investors—many ippines and services are our com-
of them for the first time to these petitive advantage. By services, we
cities—to experience Filipino hos- refer to a wide range of businesses,
pitality and to see for themselves not only on outsourced services or
the potential for business outside the movement of our people.
Manila. The fifth is in Liveable Cities. The
It is worth noting that the gov- trend worldwide is to create or
ernment has decided not to build re-design our cities to be more sus- The Makati Business Club invites guest
temporary structures and has cho- tainable and liveable. Given our speakers to its General Membership
sen instead to focus on permanent vulnerability and exposure to cli- Meetings and MBC Briefings to dis-
cuss public issues and trends, whether
infrastructure which will benefit Fili- mate change events and natural
local or global, that have an impact on
pinos over the long-term. The host- disasters, this has taken on the add-
Philippine development. MBC Forum
ing of major international events, ed perspective of designing disas- highlights the speeches and discussions at
like the ones I mentioned earlier ter-risk reduction features into our these gatherings. The full text of speeches
(WEF, APEC, and ASEAN), provides cities. and other presentations may be found at
this impetus for making long-term And sixth is good governance the MBC website, www.mbc.com.ph.
investments in better infrastructure. and anti-corruption. Within ABAC,
The presence of high-profile events there is a growing trend to address
on the calendar provides greater the issue of anti-corruption and cor- the challenge of uniting on policy
motivation and fixed deadlines for porate ethics. Good governance is to promote our country’s interests
completing these projects. a two-way street. on an international stage.
Within the government, the In sum, what will make our host-
ABAC 2015 PRIORITIES APEC-NOC’s Committee on Host ing a “success” for the Philippines?
The first is SMME Growth and De- Economy Priorities has also identified First, we will put in improved in-
velopment focused on promoting a range of issues, some of which will frastructure and services with long-
intra-APEC business among SMEs overlap some of our own priorities. term, post-APEC uses in place for
and advocating information tech- the benefit of the public. Second, if
nology and innovation to bring SUCCESSFUL HOSTING we begin the trend for Liveable Cit-
SMEs into the online world. The APEC chairmanship of 2015, I be- ies even on a small-scale and then
The second is Infrastructure De- lieve, should drive us to think through grow it out, our cities will improve.
velopment. Within ABAC, a special these issues carefully and in concert Third, we need to devise a way of
group known as the Asia Pacific with the government. This presents setting an agenda that is aligned
Infrastructure Partnership focuses us with the challenge of creating an to our own national priorities. That is
on PPP models around APEC mem- institutionalized mechanism for pub- one way of promoting our national
ber-economies and documents lic policy discussion and formulation, interest globally. Fourth, we should
best-practice across the region. It is involving the government and busi- take advantage of the opportunity
a great resource for exchanging in- ness community. In this way, both to re-shape and re-project the im-
formation on policy and practice in the private sector and the govern- age of the country as progressive
what is an emerging field in APEC. ment will support each other in inter- and business-friendly.
The third is Food Security. This national negotiations. And lastly, we should use this
group takes stock of the region’s This, could be the best benefit of hosting opportunity to unite our
supply of key crops and products hosting APEC. It will “force” upon us people and instill pride in the coun-
try. Hosting APEC involves welcom-
ing thousands of people to the
About The Speaker Philippines, many for the first time.
Jaime Augusto Zobel De Ayala We should use this opportunity to
show them what a great country
Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala is the Chairman and CEO of Ayala Corporation.
It has subsidiaries and affiliates in real estate development, telecommunica- we have.
tions, banking and financial services, electronics manufacturing, transport
infrastructure, water distribution, and business process outsourcing. Mr. Zobel Excerpts edited by
earned his bachelor’s degree in Economics in 1981 and his MBA in 1987 from MA. ROXANNE V. LU
Harvard University. Research Programs DirectorPage 6 APEC: THE ROAD TO 2015 – CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES
You can also read
