Chairperson
Executive Director
Agenda
Topic Area A: Promoting Effective Privacy and Enhancing Data Protection in APEC Region in the context of Global Digital Economy.
Member States
Australia | Kaltsas, Christos
Brunei | Ioannidis, Georgios
Canada | Valadakis, Ioannis
Chile | Andrigiannaki, Emmanouela Konstantina
China | Tzouvanou, Sofia
Chinese Taipei | Koutsonasios, Georgios
Indonesia | Mitsopoulou, Maria
Japan | Visnjic, Teodora
Korea | Kefala, Loudoviki
Malaysia | Koutouzi-Sinou, Veroniki
Mexico | Konstantinou, Fotini
New Zealand | Kritsiou, Eleftheria-Paraskevi
Papua New Guinea | Giamarellos-Bourmpoulis, Ioannis-Dionysios
Peru | Krinis, Filippos
Philippines | Spanou, Athena
Russian Federation | Michalopoulos, Konstantinos
Thailand | Moraiti, Eleftheria
USA | Vesyropoulou, Chrysoula
More on the organization
APEC is the premier Asia-Pacific economic forum, consisted by 21 permanent members. Specifically, the 21 “Member Economies” are Russia, People’s Republic of China, Chile, Canada, Mexico, United States of America, Peru, New Zealand, Thailand, Malaysia, Viet Nam, Singapore, Philippines, Republic of Korea, Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong, Brunei Darussalam, Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, Australia, Japan. For 2019, the presidency is held by Chile. The most important goal of the Organization is to support sustainable economic growth and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region.
The idea of APEC was firstly brought up by the former Prime Minister of Australia Bob Hawke. In 1989, 12 Asia-Pacific economies met in Canberra, Australia, to establish APEC. Between 1989 and 1992, APEC was mostly a ministerial-level dialogue forum. In 1993, however, thanks to the proposal of US President Bill Clinton, the practice of an annual APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting was established so as to provide greater strategic vision and direction for cooperation in the region.
The General Principles ruling APEC’s Action Plans and Activities are Comprehensiveness, by facing the obstacles of free trade; Consistency with World Trade Organization’s principles; Comparability regarding the trade and investment facilitation among member economies; Non-discrimination, regarding the reduction of trade’s barriers; Transparency, as far as it concerns the administrative procedures and the flow of goods and services; Standstill so that overprotection be avoided; Simultaneous start, continuous process and differentiated timetables, so that the goal of long-term trade and investment be achieved; Flexibility since the different levels of members’ economies being taken into account; and Cooperation in a various level, both technically and financially.
APEC’s Action Plans serve the aim of open trade and investment and regional economic integration through economic and technical cooperation combined with human security, with a view to build sustainable business environment.
