HomeDipNote...The U.S. APEC Host Year is about Creating a Resilient and Sustainable Future for All

# 									The U.S. APEC Host Year is about Creating a Resilient and Sustainable Future for All							

DipNote: Economic Prosperity and Trade Policy

Matt Murray, U.S. Senior Official for Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC)Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs

December 21, 2022

Recently in Honolulu I had the honor of opening the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Informal Senior Officials’ Meeting (ISOM) Symposium. During ISOM, the United States’ first gathering as 2023 APEC host, I joined with my counterparts across APEC’s 21 member economies to reaffirm our shared commitment to inclusive and sustainable economic growth in the APEC region. We also discussed how we can follow Thailand’s successful host year in 2022, shared U.S. priorities for 2023, and heard directly from stakeholders how we can best meet their needs.

Opening in Honolulu

Opening our host year in Honolulu had special meaning for us. Honolulu, of course, was the site for APEC Economic Leaders’ Week in 2011. During that time, we ensured that women’s economic empowerment became a shared priority across the APEC region.

As U.S. Senior Official for APEC, opening ISOM also had personal meaning. Three decades ago, I made my first trip to the Asia-Pacific region as an intern at the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta – immediately on the heels of Indonesia hosting APEC in 1994. My experience as a student in Indonesia was life-changing and led me to where I am today.

Why is the U.S. Hosting APEC in 2023?

Our engagements in Hawaiʻi reminded me why we are hosting APEC in the first place: to benefit Americans as well as people across the APEC region. This was evident in our interactions with local Hawaiian middle-schoolers, government and non-government stakeholders, and business leaders across the region. These stakeholders are the ones implementing ideas and driving forward innovation, while adapting to challenges with remarkable resiliency. Our conversations at the senior officials’ level need to include them, as hosting APEC isn’t worth anything if we’re not supporting or listening to our communities, our constituents, and our people.

Hosting APEC in 2023 is also an extension of the U.S. commitment to economic engagement with the region. Engagement with APEC economies is critical, as members account for approximately 40 percent of the global population and nearly half of global trade. As of 2021, fellow APEC members were also the destination for more than 60 percent of U.S. goods exports. Seven of the top 10 U.S. overall trading partners are also members.

In addition, 2023 marks the 30th anniversary of the first APEC Leaders’ Meeting on Blake Island, Washington.

What are our priorities as host?

To drive forward the “C” in APEC – Cooperation – we look forward to working with APEC economies in 2023 to build on previous successes. We will do so under the theme “Creating a Resilient and Sustainable Future for All.” As Secretary Blinken laid out during the formal handover of the APEC Ministerial Meeting to the United States, our work with APEC economies will focus on priorities in the following areas:
        - Interconnected – we will work to build a resilient and interconnected region that advances broad-based economic prosperity.
        - Innovative – we will work to enable an innovative environment for a sustainable future.
        - Inclusive – we will affirm an equitable and inclusive future for all.

Together through APEC we will implement solutions to ongoing challenges including recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic, strengthening supply chains, tackling food security, and combating the climate crisis. In doing so, we will strengthen local communities, build resiliency across the board, and provide economic opportunity for our people in the Asia-Pacific region.

As we consider these challenges, we also see great potential for APEC to be a real difference maker because it’s in APEC’s DNA to be so — it has strong linkages with the private sector and other stakeholders, its work streams integrate technical experts, and its consensus-based and non-binding nature enables creative solutions for our leaders to advance economic cooperation.

Looking Ahead

As APEC meets in the U.S. during 2023, we will face a serious question Secretary Blinken posed during the APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting in Bangkok — “How can we meet the moment we are in?”

After ISOM, I am more confident than ever in our ability to answer this question especially by working with our stakeholders. Whether it is the private sector, civil society, labor organizations, environmental groups, or aspiring entrepreneurs, non-government actors have always helped drive U.S. engagement in the APEC region and foster the people-to-people ties and economic growth we all seek.

Our conversations will focus on how we can ensure that our engagement with the APEC region supports economic prosperity for our people, expands women’s participation in the global economy, and supports U.S. innovation in the digital economy.

Together we will drive forward work on key issues like supply chain resilience, digital trade, connectivity, opportunities for small and medium-sized enterprises, climate change and environmental sustainability, food security, health, anti-corruption, digitalization, women’s economic empowerment, and supporting historically underserved and underrepresented communities.

We have an exciting year ahead of us and a lot to do. But I am reminded of my many years in China where I heard frequently the reassurance that “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” Our team is excited and ready for the year to come, and we look forward to building on our shared successes and hosting everyone for our next APEC meeting in Palm Springs, California in February 2023.

Follow us on LinkedIn to keep up with the latest for our host year.

Read more about the outcomes from ISOM here.

Please don’t hesitate to contact the U.S. APEC Team at DOSAPEC@state.gov for more information.

*About the Author: Matt Murray is the Senior Official for APEC in the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs (EAP). In this role, Matt coordinates U.S. participation in APEC and also oversees the Office of Economic Policy in EAP.*

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