APEC leaders issue declaration on policy actions for Covid-19

JAKARTA – Leaders of 21 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) member economies concluded this year’s APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting on Friday by adopting a declaration that incorporates policy actions formulated to respond to Covid-19 (coronavirus disease 2019).

The declaration was made under the theme “Join, Work, Grow Together,” and the APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting was chaired by New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, according to a release issued by the APEC Secretariat and received here on Saturday.

The declaration lays out commitments in accelerating economic recovery and achieving sustainable and inclusive growth, including further actions in tackling climate change, empowering groups with untapped economic potential, supporting the region’s micro, small and medium enterprises, and addressing the digital divide.

Leaders also endorsed the Aotearoa Plan of Action, a blueprint to implement the APEC Putrajaya Vision 2040, which was adopted at the 2020 APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting.

“APEC Leaders are more determined than ever to work together to defeat COVID-19, accelerate the region’s economic recovery, respond to climate change, and build growth that is inclusive of all our people,” Ardern affirmed.

“As we continue to recover from this global crisis, leaders acknowledged the opportunity to reset. The new Aotearoa Plan of Action, agreed to by all leaders, sets out a plan for APEC’s work through until 2040,” she stated.

“The Agenda stays true to APEC’s original mission of growing trade and our economies. While it underpins prosperity in the short term, leaders have also used the Aotearoa Plan of Action to focus on the choices that will support Asia-Pacific’s future generations, like decarbonization and empowering our Indigenous people,” Ardern stated.

Ardern further noted that as New Zealand’s leadership of APEC in 2021 draws to a close, APEC has united the region in a coordinated response to the biggest economic downturn in 75 years, with a series of results that matter to New Zealanders and the region. (Antara)