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1601 EAST WES A MEETING-MINDS

A NEWSLETTER FOR THEAPEC STUDY CENTERS

Volume VIII, Number 1 East-West Center January 2001

Learning From ExperienceThe First APIAN Policy Report

November 2000

The APEC International AssessmentNetwork (APIAN) project issued its first majorpolicy report, Learning From Experience prior tothe Brunei Leaders Meeting. The consensusdocument contained 12 major recommendationsfor improving APEC performance, and was signedby 22 experts from 13 APEC member economies.

The APEC Secretariat and Brunei Chairoffices distributed 150 copies of the "PolicyReport" to the leaders and ministerial delegationsattending the Brunei Leaders Meeting November16, 2000, and to the assembled media. APIANparticipants circulated the Report to their homeconstituencies, and by all reports therecommendations were well received.

Learning From Experience and theassociated press release, has been posted on thewebsites of the APEC Secretariat, the Institute ofSoutheast Asian Studies (ISEAS) and MonashUniversity, among other APEC Study Center sites.Monash has informed non-APIAN APEC StudyCenters ofthe publication.

APIAN is now firmly established in theAPEC lexicon and is listed in the APECSecretariat's list ofAPEC abbreviations.

At a workshop held in Singapore inOctober, where the APIAN Report was finalized,participants agreed to prepare their "Issue Reports"for publication in an edited volume under theauspices of the Institute of Southeast AsianStudies. In addition, ISEAS and APIAN areplanning to convene an APEC Roundtable in theSpring 2001.

The following is an excerpt from LearningFrom Experience

APIAN Executive Summary

The APEC International AssessmentNetwork (APIAN) is a collaborative, independentproject among participating APEC Study Centersto track and assess the design and execution ofselect APEC initiatives. APIAN's mission is toenhance knowledge among government officialsand the general public with regard to APECactivities, to encourage the fulfillment of APECobjects and commitments, and to identify ways forAPEC to improve its performance.

Trade and InvestmentLiberalization and Facilitation

(TILF)

APIAN attributes the apparent lack ofvalue-added of APEC's TILF to several factorsincluding the slow adaptation of the APEC agenda,the absence of priorities, shortfalls in membercommitments, weak evaluation procedures, and thedearth of specific APEC incentives. To enhanceAPEC's performance on TILF, APIANrecommends:

1 - APEC should clarify and prioritizesome ofits trade policy initiatives. In

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Volume VIII, Number 1, January 2001MEETINGMINDS

A NEWSLETTER FOR THE APEC STUDYCENTERS

some complex issue areas, such asservices and competition policy,APEC should consider prioritizingselect sub-sectors or actionable items.It is also recommended that APECestablish priority areas for immediate

progress in trade and investmentliberalization, such as nationaltreatment, non-tariff barriers and tariffpeaks and export subsidies.

2. APEC should continue to improve itsIndividual Actions Plans (lAPs). TAPcommitments should be specific,concrete and measurable to the extent

possible.3. APEC members should be accountable

for their lAP commitments. APECshould establish effective mechanisms- both internal and external to APECfor the review of members' TAPcommitments and implementation.The TAP peer reviews should call formore rigorous commentaries. APECshould continue to call upon outside,

independent experts to evaluate itsTILF programmes.

coordination among Ecotech forums. TheEcotech Subcommittee should be givenmore authority and resources to pursue itsmandate.

2. Ecotech needs more active funding. APECshould encourage the resource richmultilateral development banks to fundsound Ecotech projects. More organic tiesshould also be pursued with bilateraldonors. Private-sector involvement inspecific projects should also besystematically encouraged. It is suggestedthat consideration be given to establishing"Ecotech Funds" that would use APECcreativity to catalyze financial supportfrom these public and private sourcesbehind APEC priorities.

3. APEC should mandate action plans forEcotech. Individual and collective action

plans should be prepared for Ecotech. Toassure coherence and succinctness, suchaction plans should be restricted to APECspecific programmes and projects. In theirindividual action plans (TAPs), membersshould specify both commitments andimplementation results, and includetimetables and quantifiable targets to theextent possible.

Economic and Technical Cooperation(Ecotech)

Ecotech is critical to the realization ofAPEC's vision and the economic development ofAPEC members. Yet, Ecotech suffers from anumber of shortcomings, including the excessivediffusion of limited Ecotech resources, the

proliferation of Ecotech forums, the lack ofcoordination around defined APEC objectives,inadequate authority allowed the EcotechSubcommittee, and too little funding for Ecotechinitiatives.

To enable APEC to overcome the currentcrisis of confidence in its Ecotech programmes,APTAN recommends:

APEC should overhaul its Ecotechprogrammes. APEC needs to streamlineEcotech programmes, to set priorities, torationalize working groups, and to improve

Institutional Structures

APEC will fall well short of its goals if itdoes not find a better match between its aspirationsand its institutional structures. Therefore, APIANrecommends:

The APEC Secretariat should bestrengthened. A stronger Secretariat thathas more in-house capacity to monitorimplementation of APEC initiatives canhelp APEC to better evaluate, rationalizeand coordinate both TTLF and Ecotech. Tostrengthen the Secretariat, APIAN thecreation of longer-term professionalpositions and the designation of aSecretary General with a multi-year termofoffice are proposed.APEC should deepen its ties with otherinternational and regional organizations

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APIAN urges Ecotech to seek supportfrom multilateral development banks thatshare APEC objectives. TILF forumsshould deepen their relations with theWorld Trade Organization and otherrelevant multilateral forums. APECshould consult more routinely with otherregional arrangements, such that theirgains in liberalization are constructivelynested underAPEC.

3. Ministries of Finance should be betterintegrated into the APEC process. Thepost financial crisis agenda demands thatAPEC better integrate finance anddevelopment.

4. Partnerships with outside groups shouldbe strengthened. APIAN questionnairessuggest that strong business and civilsociety participation contributes tosuccessful implementation of APECinitiatives. Business should be involved inall stages of the project cycle. NGOinvolvement with select working groups,such as those responsible for theenvironment, human resourcedevelopment, gender equality and micro-enterprises, would be particularlybeneficial.

5 . Academic engagement should beencouraged. To help build a broadlybased Pacific community of intellectuals,APEC should reach out moresystematically to universities and policyinstitutes. APIAN - as a voluntarygrouping of APEC Study Centers isconvinced that APEC can take betteradvantage of the Centers' capacities and

goodwill.6. APEC should augment its dissemination

e/Jrts. APIAN questionnaires revealed a

stunning lack of public awareness ofAPEC activities. A better-staffedSecretariat should devote more resourcesto dissemination and outreach to non-governmental groups. Broader and more

systematic engagement with the privatesector and other non-governmental groupswould be an important component of an

energized effort to broaden APEC's base.For it is only through deep and broad

dialogue that APEC can realize its coremission - to foster a community or nationsand peoples in the Asia Pacific.

For further information, please contact:

Dr. Richard Feinburg,Professor and Director,APEC Study CenterIRPS/UCSD9500 Gilman DriveLa Jolla, CA 92093-0519Tel: (858)-534-7627FAX: (858)-534-3939E-mail: rfeinburg@ucsd.edu

Australia

Australian APEC Study Centre

The Australian APEC Study Centre hadanother busy year during 2000. A major three-yearprogram on insurance and pension regulatoryregimes in Asia launched. This program has beenendorsed by the APEC Finance Ministers and wascommended by the APEC Leaders at their Summitin Brunei in November. The first activity was asuccessful Symposium, which was held in Manilain November. Further annual symposia and twice-yearly training courses are among the activitiesthat are projected.

In June and July the Centre conducted atrade policy course titled "Facilitating Trade andInvestment Flows Beyond 2000." Twenty-oneparticipants attended this course from developingAPEC economies.

During the year the Centre organizedconferences on Trade and Labour Rights and on

Managing Globalization for Prosperity. In OctoberMr. Warren Maruyama, a prominent Washington-

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News from Member-Economy

APEC Study Centers

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MEETINGMINDSA NEWSLETTER FOR THE APEC STUDY

CENTERS

based trade expert, delivered the 2000 MonashAPEC Lecture,

As part of its public education program,the Centre has developed an electronic resource

called "Globalisations Guide." This electronicresource is pitched at the senior secondary schoollevel. It argues the cases for and againstglobalization and contains a select list of links toother Internet resources. It can be accessed at

http://www.globalisationguide.org

Finally, in December, the Centre was hostto the APEC Public/Private Sector Infrastructure

Dialogue 2000.

Full details of these activities are availableat ip://www.apec.org.au

For further information, please contact:

Darby HiggsAustralian APEC Study CentreTel: (613)-9903-8021E-mail: darby.higgs(hiarts.monash.edu.au

P

Canada

APEC Study Centre in Canada

The APEC Study Centre in Canada

recently published, Cutting Through Red TapeNew Directions fbr APEC's Trade Facilitation

The report authored by Yuen Pau Woo ofthe Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada (APFC) andJohn Wilson of The World Bank, is based on a

workshop on trade facilitation in APEC organizedby the APFC, the World Bank and the governmentof Canada held in Singapore in September 2000.

Cutting red tape would do more to boostAsian trade than reducing tariffs, in a report givento regional trade ministers meeting in Brunei lastNovember 16, 2000.

when APEC's credibility as a regional forumcommitted to free and open trade and investment isin question, the report argues the grouping could

gain new relevance by pushing initiatives in thearea of trade facilitation. Studies show thatsmoother trade procedures can add more than US$46 billion to regional economic growth over thenext decade, much more than the gain throughlower tariffs."

Trade facilitation - focusing on such areasas simplification of customs procedures, productstandards and technical regulations and increasingthe ease with which business and professional staffcan move between economies -- has been in the onthe back burner ofAPEC's activities.

A survey of business people in the APECeconomies showed that customs procedures andrestrictive administrative regulations are moreserious impediments to trade than tariffs. The

report points to a study of cargo clearance times at

Tanjung Perak port in Indonesia carried out by theWorld Customs Organization. The study found thatthe formal tariff assessment process for certain

shipments took an average of 6.4 minutes,

compared to 159 hours and 23 minutes for otheractivities involved in cargo clearance.

The main sources of delay included

incomplete documents; red tape involved in

releasing goods from warehouses; documentationerrors; payment hold-ups; and "deliberate delays"in delivery, even after the release of goods bycustoms officials.

Cutting red tape inhibiting trade willgenerate significant gains for member economies,the report notes. "The APEC Economic Committeehas estimated that trade facilitation measurescommitted to date will add 0.25% of real GDP toAPEC (or about US $46 billion in 1997 prices) by2010, compared to economic gains from tradeliberalization measures (tariff removal) amountingto 0,16% of real GDP (about US $30 billion)."

The press release said that the reportrecommends five areas where APEC can moveforward on easing the regulatory burden on trade:According to a press release, Dr. John D.

wiene, President and UJ'J 01 me Asia raceFoundation of Canada, commented that, "At a time

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Volume VIII, Number 1, January 2001MEETINGMINDS

A NEWSLETTER FOR THE APEC STUDYCENTERS

1 . Establish a high-level trade facilitationfocus, which includes a developmentperspective;

2 . Renew trade facilitation objectives andestablish performance targets rather thanlooking to measure inputs only;

3 . Encourage senior officials from "tradefacilitation" line departments anddevelopment agencies and not just fromtrade and foreign affairs ministries, to bemore engaged in APEC fora;

4. Ensure trade facilitation is a priority intechnical assistance;

5 . Invest in trade facilitation research andcapacity building.

For further information, please contact:

Dr. Yuen Pau WooDirectorAPEC Study Centre in CanadaE-mail: yuenkapfc.apfnet.org

USA 1

University of HawaiiAPEC Study Center (UHASC)

In cooperation with the University ofHawaii and the Telephone Organization ofThailand, the Thai APEC Electronic CommerceTraining Center organized a two-day workshop onE-commerce Technologies.

The workshop was held on September 7-8,2000, with participation from Thailand, India,Australia, U.S., Korea, the Philippines, Singaporeand Chinese Taipei. Prof. Tung Bui, co-director ofthe University of Hawaii APEC Study Center,discussed business and marketing strategies for e-commerce, focusing on developing economies.

With the cooperation of the University ofHawaii, Thailand received a US$142,000 grant toconduct a survey on the current status of e-

commerce in APEC developing economies. TheUniversity of Hawaii APEC Study Center will actas the primary research partner and will host Thairesearchers to conduct the survey, and to producean e-commerce tutorial for dissemination withinthe APEC economies.

For further information, please contact:

Dr. Tung BuiMatson Navigation Co.Distinguished ProfessorAPEC Study Center, Co-DirectorCollege of Business AdministrationUniversity ofHawaiiHonolulu, HI 96822Tel: (808) 956-5565Fax: (808) 956-9889E-mail: tbui@cba.hawaii.eduhttp://ec.cba.hawaii.edu/tbui

East-West CenterAPEC Study Center

The East-West Seminars program recentlyheld the Asia Pacific Conference on E-commerce,October 30-November 1, 2000 and the Asia PacificExecutive Forum - Doing Business in a ChangingAsia: A Strategic Vision, January 16-19, 2001.

The Jbllowing is a brief description of bothactivities:

Asia Pacific Conferenceon E-Commerce

Co-sponsored by the East-West Center's East-West Seminars program and Pennsylvania StateUniversity's Institute for Information Policy, theconference was held in Honolulu at the East-WestCenter, October 30-November 1, 2000.

Electronic commerce, the fastest growingbusiness sector in the world, is widely recognizedas a key factor of national and regional economicgrowth in Asia Pacific. At the same time, its rapidspread has raised many difficult business, legal andpolicy issues. This East-West Center conferencebrought together prominent representatives from e-

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East-West CenterVolume VIII, Number 1, January 2001

commerce, telecommunications and IT industriesin Asia, the Pacific and the United States for threedays of intensive discussions on the impacts and

implications ofthe New Economy.

The "2nd Asia Pacific Conference on E-commerce: Investment Opportunities and E-Business Models in Asian Emerging Markets" isscheduled for October 28-30, 2001, East-WestCenter, Honolulu.

Asia Pacific Executive ForumDoing Business in a Changing Asia

A Strategic Vision

The East-West Center in partnership withFrost & Sullivan, held the Executive Forum inHonolulu at the East-West Center, January 16 - 19,2001. The Center's Executive Forum providesopportunities for corporate leaders to gain insightinto the major issues of the Asia Pacific regionfrom leading industry experts and scholars.

Designed as a corporate retreat, theExecutive Forum brought together seniorexecutives, government policymakers andacademic experts for two days of intensivedialogue on critical issues facing the region andhow they impact economics and business.

The Executive Forum provides the privatesector with a neutral and objective venue to

exchange views and to brainstorm on key issuesrelating to the future economic and politicaloutlook in Asia Pacific. As current events haveshown, the dynamics of the region require up-to-date insights into and analysis of the impacts of therapid changes taking place. The Asia PacificExecutive Forum provides an opportunity for

corporate decision-makers to be better informed ofcritical developments and their impacts forstrategic planning.

A second Asia Pacific Executive Forum isscheduled for Spring 2002.

For more information on the E-commerceconference and the Executive Forum, please visitour website: www.EastWestCenter.org. Click on

MEETINGMINDSA NEWSLETTER FOR THE APEC STUDY

CENTERS

'Seminars' followed by 'Business Professionals.'

Copies of the conference summary reports for bothconferences are available. Please contact:

East-West SeminarsEast-West Center1601 East-West RoadHonolulu, Hawaii 96848 U.S.A.Tel: 1-808-944-7384Fax: 1-808-944-7600E-mail: seminars@eastwestcenter.orgWebsite: www.eastwestcenter.org

MEETINGMINDS is published by the

EAST-WEST CENTE

APEC Study Center

For more information contact:

Charles E. MorrisonE-mail: morrisoc@EastWestCenter.org

Telephone: 1-808-944-7384Fax: 1-808-944-7600

This issue was edited by:

Butch V. Dela Cruz(delacrub@EastWestCenter.org)

and

Sheree Groves(grovess(ãjEastWestCenter. org)

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