QUEZON CITY, Dec. 07 – The Philippines will host its first APEC 2015 meeting, the Informal Senior Officials’ Meeting (ISOM) on December 08 to 09 in Makati Shangri-La, Manila.
The ISOM will introduce the Philippines’ APEC 2015 priorities which are designed to ensure continuity of past and ongoing work in APEC; promote balance of and relevance to each member economy's domestic and regional needs; and ensure sustainability of efforts in achieving APEC’s short, medium and long term goals.
Designed to be a two-part event, the ISOM will be composed of a Symposium on APEC 2015 Priorities, to be followed by a Senior Officials’ Consultative Dialogue on APEC Priorities on the second day.
Symposium on APEC 2015 Priorities
Envisioned to guide APEC Senior Officials in the direction-setting of APEC 2015, the Symposium brings together local and international experts from multilateral institutions, think-tanks, national agencies, business and other organizations such as the World Trade Organization (WTO), International Trade Center, Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and Asian Development Bank who will share their views and analysis on the latest economic developments and opportunities in the Asia-Pacific.
The Symposium will focus on the following topics: 21st century Megatrends and Challenges; An Inclusive Growth Strategy for the APEC region; Regional Economic Integration and the Multilateral Trading System; Fostering SMEs’ Participation in Regional and Global Markets; Human Capital Development; and Sustainable and Resilient Communities.
Notable speakers include: Dr. Bernard Hoekman of the European University Institute; Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala of the Ayala Group of Companies; Diane Wang, co-founder and CEO of DHGate.com; Ramon R. Del Rosario, Jr. of the Philippine Business for Education; Professor Nobuaki Hamaguchi of the Research Institute for Economics and Business Administration; and Albay Governor Joey Salceda.
Executive Secretary Paquito N. Ochoa will deliver the Welcome Remarks. Trade and Industry Secretary Gregory L. Domingo and Socio-Economic Planning Secretary will deliver Keynote Speeches.
The Symposium is open to all delegates including the APEC Senior Officials and their respective delegations, official APEC observers from ASEAN, APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC), and Pacific Island Forum, and members of the diplomatic corps of the Philippines. Various Philippine agencies, jointly led by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), will also attend.
Senior Officials’ Consultative Dialogue on APEC Priorities
On the second day, APEC Senior Officials and selected delegates will have a closed-door discussion on the outcomes and takeaways from the Symposium, as well as how these can enhance the APEC 2015 overarching theme of inclusive growth as encapsulated by the Philippines’ APEC 2015 tagline: “Building Inclusive Economies, Building a Better World”.
The Dialogue will also be an opportunity for Senior Officials to steer the APEC agenda and calendar of meetings according to the APEC 2015 Priorities that the Philippines will introduce.
Media Access
Media are invited to cover the Symposium on December 08, Monday; and the Family Photo in the morning of December 09, Tuesday.
The Chair of the Senior Officials’ Meeting will issue a statement on the results of the Symposium and Dialogue at the close of ISOM.
An APEC 2015 Primer prepared by the Foreign Service Institute with the DFA will be available on the official APEC 2015 website http://apec2015.ph.
For further details, please contact:
The Office of the SOM Chair at apecsomchairofc@apec2015.ph or call +632 834 3047. (DFA)