UN General Assembly
2018

Through APEC, we have opportunities to attract trade and foreign direct investment. It will continue to provide us with access to knowledge and to a dialogue with APEC economic leaders, who will be in attendance. Such capacity-building support in our country will lead directly to business growth and the creation of more jobs for our people. However, given our small and open economy, which is subject to external forces, we join all other members of the international community in promoting respect for and the strengthening of the rules-based, international multilateral trading system. Hosting the APEC event is a huge challenge for a developing country such as ours, and people can sometimes paralyse themselves by focusing only on their perceived shortfalls or problems. But we in Papua New Guinea decided to try it. That perspective also applies to our view of the United Nations and its work.