1. APEC Structure and Decision-Making Prof
APEC Structure and Decision-Making Prof. Philip Yang National Taiwan University
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2. APEC Guiding Principles
Voluntary Compliance
Unilateral Liberalization
WTO Consistency: measures undertaken in the context of the APEC Action Agenda are consistent with the principles of the WTO
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3. Open Regionalism
to extend its regional liberalization to non members on a mutually reciprocal basis
It seeks to assure that regional agreements will in practice be building blocks for further global liberalization rather than stumbling blocks that deter such progress.
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4. Unilateral liberalization measures that would open to all WTO members – whether or not they are members of APEC
To reconcile APEC process and result with the broader global trade rules and regime (GATT/WTO).
APEC members seek to reduce barriers to goods and services among themselves, they would do so in a WTO-consistent manner.
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5. Voluntarism All actions should be taken on a voluntary basis.
APEC operates on the basis of consensus. There is no voting, no power to force any member to take an action against that member’s will, no sanctions or retaliation, and, officially, no negotiation.
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6. How APEC Operates
APEC operates as a cooperative, multilateral economic and trade forum.
By promoting dialogue and equal respect for the views of all participants and making decisions based on consensus.
Member Economies take individual and collective actions to open their markets and promote economic growth.
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7. Host Economy
Every year one of the 21 APEC Member Economies plays host to APEC meetings and serves as the APEC Chair.
The APEC host economy is responsible for chairing the annual Economic Leaders' Meeting, selected Ministerial Meetings, Senior Officials Meetings, the APEC Business Advisory Council and the APEC Study Centres Consortium and also fills the Executive Director position at the APEC Secretariat.
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8. APEC Structure
APEC structure makes it unique amongst trade and economic groupings. Unlike the WTO which is a rules-based organization with trade dispute enforcement powers, APEC uses consultation and consensus building to make progress.
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9. APEC's key decisions are made at a series of annual meetings.
Policies agreed to at APEC meetings are adopted voluntarily and information-sharing between members economies and with the public is very important.
APEC's key decisions are made at a series of annual meetings.
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10. Policy Level APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting APEC Ministerial Meeting
Sectoral Ministerial Meetings
APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC)
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11. Economic Leaders’ Meeting
Economic Leaders’ Meeting is held one a year in the APEC host economy.
Declarations from this meeting set the policy agenda for APEC.
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12. APEC Ministerial Meeting
Annual APEC Ministerial Meeting of foreign and economic/trade ministers is held immediately prior to Leaders’ Meeting.
Ministers take stock of the year’s activities and provide recommendations for Leaders’ consideration.
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13. Sectoral Ministerial Meetings
There are regular meetings of APEC Ministers of education, energy, environment and sustainable development, finance, fisheries, human resources development, science and technology, small and medium enterprises, telecommunications, trade, tourism and transportation.
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14. Working Level Senior Officials' Meeting (SOM)
Committees, Working Groups, SOM Task Groups
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15. Senior Officials’ Meeting (SOM)
APEC Senior Officials meet three or four times throughout the year to oversee the work of APEC fora prepare for the Leaders' Meeting and respond to directions set by Leaders in earlier meetings.
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16. Committees, Working Groups, SOM Task Groups
Below the Senior Officials Meeting (SOM) are three overarching committees and 23 Working Groups and sub-fora.
Committees:
Budget and Management Committee
Economic Committee
Committee on Trade and Investment
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18. The APEC Secretariat
Unlike other multilateral bodies, APEC is not supported by a large bureaucracy. The APEC Secretariat, located in Singapore, comprises 23 diplomats and 20 locally hired staff. An Executive Director, an Ambassador sent by that year's APEC host, heads the Secretariat.
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19. Executive Director is assisted by the Deputy Executive Director (from the following year's APEC host) who becomes the Executive Director when the new APEC host takes over. The other 21 diplomats are from the Foreign Affairs and Trade Ministries of APEC economies.
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20. The Secretariat advises working groups on the design of APEC projects, manages project funding, and evaluates the projects after they are completed. It also maintains the APEC website, library, archives and databases, produces APEC publications and liaises with the media.
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21. APEC Business Advisory Council, ABAC
In 1995 APEC Economic Leaders established a permanent council composed of up to three senior business people from each member economy to provide advice on the implementation of APEC action plans and on other specific business/private sector priorities.
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22. APEC Three Pillars Trade and Investment Liberalization
Trade Facilitation
Technical Cooperation
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23. Non-Trade Issues Environment Social Issues Infrastructure
Human Resources
Women’s Issues…
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24. Political Issue? APEC: Asia-Pacific Economic Community? East Timor
Anti-Terrorism
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25. APEC Achievements Asia-Pacific trade liberalization
APEC remains a relevant forum to pursue trade and investment liberalization in the region.
Leaders’ Summit: consensus-building and political implication
Regional economic cooperation and sense of community
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26. APEC’s Challenges
APEC must face the challenge of developing a coherent response to the regional Crisis
1997 Financial Crisis
1998 East Timor
2001 Terrorism
2003 SARS
Asia-Pacific FTA?
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27. In 1997, APEC has failed to mount even a small-scale approach to solving the financial problem.
In 2000, APEC members reached a vague consensus to make efforts toward an early launch of talks under the World Trade Organization (WTO), but failed to agree on when to start negotiations and how to push them forward.
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28. APEC's downhill slide has become increasingly clear of late.
Summits in recent years have yielded few substantial initiatives on regional economic cooperation or on liberalizing trade and investment.
ASEAN countries complain that APEC is biased in favor of trade liberalization issues that are mainly of concern to industrialized nations.
APEC is losing influence and relevance because its 21 members cannot agree on the forum's role and agenda.
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29. New Vision?
The global trade environment has changed dramatically since APEC was created in 1989.
Multilateral trade talks are converging on the WTO, while an increasing number of countries are moving toward sub-regional or bilateral free-trade agreements.
These changes in the environment demand that APEC reassess its strategies and redefine its mission.
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30. Discuss Question
Toshihiro Nikai, Japan's trade minister, and US Trade Representative Ron Kirk said they would seek an "ambitious agenda" at the APEC forum, which will hold its annual summit in Japan next year and in the United States in 2011.
APEC meets this year in Singapore. What issues does your country think should be at the forefront of the APEC agenda? Why are these issues of such importance?
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