THE member-economies of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) welcomed the offer of the Philippines to host the APEC summit in 2015.
The announcement of the Philippines hosting the APEC in 2015 was contained in the joint declaration issued by the 21 APEC leaders, including President Benigno S. Aquino III, at the conclusion of the APEC leaders’ Meeting with the theme of “Integrate to Grow, Innovate to Prosper” held here at the Far Eastern Federal University on Russkiy Island.
The country will be hosting the APEC 2015 after Indonesia and China.
“We welcome the offer of the People’s Republic of China, the Philippines and Peru to host APEC in 2014, 2015 and 2016 respectively,” the declaration stated.
“We welcome the invitation from the President of Indonesia to meet again in Bali in 2013,” it added.
Also in the joint declaration, the APEC leaders believed that the work that has been done in APEC in 2012 to build a more integrated society and ensure innovation-based economic growth “will contribute to our common goal of achieving prosperity for APEC economies.”
They also support the increasing engagement of the APEC Business Advisory Council which contributes significantly to greater collaboration between the public and private sectors.
“We remain fully committed to facilitate the role of APEC’s business community and to provide more opportunities for its participation in APEC’s work,” the APEC leaders said.
They also reaffirmed their commitment to provide effective economic and technical cooperation activities outlined in the Osaka Action Agenda and to assist APEC members in accordance with the Manila Framework.
The APEC leaders will also continue to take necessary and concrete actions to mitigate negative effects, build resilience of APEC economies and reach new heights in the development of the region. (PCOO/I-ed)
