Lima (Antara Bali)- Ministers of the 21 member economies of Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) have reaffirmed their commitment to achieve the Bogor Goals.
"We reaffirm our commitment to achieve the Bogor Goals of free and open trade and investment in order to strengthen and deepen regional economic integration through
both collective and individual efforts," Foreign Affairs Minister of Peru Ricardo Luna in his capacity as chairman of the APEC Ministerial Meeting (AMM), said when reading a joint statement here, Saturday.
The ministers also commended the completion of the 2016 Second-Term Review of APEC's Progress Towards the Bogor Goals and agreed to submit the report to the APEC Leaders.
In the joint statement issued after the conclusion of the AMM, the members reiterated their willingness to move negotiations forward in the creation of the Free Trade Area in Asia-Pacific (FTAAP).
"We reaffirm our commitment to advance the process in a comprehensive and systematic manner toward the eventual realization of the FTAAP as a major instrument to further APEC'ss regional economic integration agenda toward and beyond the Bogor Goals," Luna noted.
Bogor Goals refer to a set of initiatives for realizing free and open trade in the Asia-Pacific agreed by member economies in 1994 in Bogor, Indonesia.
By tackling the complex challenges that the global economy is facing, APEC members remain committed to use all available policy tools - monetary, fiscal and structural
- individually and collectively, to strengthen global demand and address supply constraints.
They also believe that the benefits of trade and open markets need to be communicated to the wider public more effectively, emphasizing how trade promotes innovation,
employment and higher living standards, and creates opportunities for their citizens that can support inclusive growth
"Against this backdrop, we commend progress made in 2016 in the APEC region in pursuing trade and investment liberalization, business facilitation and economic and
technical cooperation to boost human development, inclusive growth and prosperity in the region," Luna added.
The APEC Ministerial Meeting was held on Nov 17 and 18, and followed by the 2016 APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting on Sunday (Nov 20).
Indonesia is being represented by Vice President M Jusuf Kalla in the APEC Summit. (WDY)
