Deputy ministers from Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) economies will meet starting today for the Third Senior Officials’ Meeting (SOM3) to firm up initiatives that will benefit the ordinary person and the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).
Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Laura del Rosario, SOM chairperson, said they will focus on strategies to improve education, Internet connectivity, sustainability of cities, and environmental conservation, among others.
There will also be discussions on reforms needed to push for inclusive growth in each economy.
All this will benefit the ordinary citizen, impact on the small communities, and help MSMEs scale up so that they can participate in electronic commerce and compete in the global market.
“We hope that what we’re doing in APEC will really be building blocks towards finding solutions to what we face in the 21st century,” del Rosario said in a briefing yesterday at the APEC International Media Center.
In pushing for improved and innovative education, she cited the need to implement the K-to-12 program, scale up the technical skills being taught in schools and update teaching methodologies.
“Education is what will carry us forward. If we stay where we are, we will not be able to compete,” she said.
She said economies and technologies change so fast, people need to be nimble to move from one problem to another to address this. The skills acquired 20 years ago would no longer apply today.
“At the heart of all of this is the issue of innovation and skillful thinking,” she added.
Del Rosario also cited the need for APEC economies to prioritize Internet connectivity, which will impact on education, business and other sectors.
“What we are trying to say is that it will somehow remind all governments that Internet connection is very important and that the speed of the Internet is really necessary for us to move forward,” she said.
Senior officials will also discuss how to improve MSMEs’ access to technologies and finance, although the finance-related issues will be tackled during the Finance and Central Bank Deputies Meeting.
The Finance officials will finalize the Cebu Action Plan, a road map proposed by the Philippines to make the Asia-Pacific region more financially inclusive and resilient.
This will be launched during the Finance Ministers’ Meeting next week.
The plan is expected to list strategies to improve credit access for MSMEs and improve social services to promote inclusive growth.
Also part of the SOM3 was a city mayors’ forum, where over 20 mayors discussed how to create sustainable cities.
Their discussions included public-private partnerships, water and air pollution, recovery and differentiation of water, treatment and conversion of waste, as well as the need for green spaces. The forum also discussed traffic congestion.