APEC's trade vision<\/p>\n
The most visionary among the policy recommendations contained in the
\nsecond report of the Eminent Persons Group delivered on Wednesday to
\nPresident Soeharto, in his capacity as the Chairman of APEC, is the call
\nfor the development of free and open trade and investment in the Asia-
\nPacific region by 2020 at the latest.<\/p>\n
We think the free trade proposal is one of the most important agenda
\nitems for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum if this
\norganization is serious about moving forward from the process of dialogs
\nover the past five years to concrete programs of action to generate
\ntangible economic benefits for the region.<\/p>\n
We don't see the proposal as a bold one. Nor is the idea of free and
\nopen trade and investment new to the APEC process. In fact, a free
\ntrading system is the primary objective and the common interest of the
\n12 countries which founded APEC in Canberra in November, 1989. No
\nwonder, up to last year, APEC's annual ministerial meetings always put
\nthe then protracted Uruguay Round multilateral trade negotiations on top
\nof their agendas.<\/p>\n
Obviously, the first question is whether the least developed members
\nof APEC, notably Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia and the Philippines, all
\nASEAN members, and Papua New Guinea will accept the proposed free and
\nopen trade system within the target period as prescribed by the expert
\ntask force.<\/p>\n
However, given the economic developments in Asia's developing
\ncountries over the last decade, that question may now be irrelevant. In
\nfact, free and open international trade has become the engine of
\neconomic growth in almost all developing countries in Asia. This is due
\nin great part to the adoption of an outward-looking economic policy
\nsince the latter part of the 1980s. In fact, many of them have even
\npursued an export-led growth strategy.<\/p>\n
For example, Indonesia, which has been known as the most reserved
\nabout free trade arrangements among the ASEAN countries, has become
\nincreasingly enthusiastic about that concept, especially because export
\ntrade has been designed as the locomotive of its economic expansion.<\/p>\n
The time schedules proposed by the eminent persons for the trade
\nliberalization make the proposal even more palatable to the least
\ndeveloped members of APEC in view of the wide economic diversity of APEC
\nmembers. We think the 2020 deadline -- about 25 years from now -- for
\nthe completion of trade liberalization is quite pragmatic as there will
\nbe broad leeway for the least developed members to make the necessary
\nadjustments in a gradual way.<\/p>\n
The goal of free and open trade may even be achieved ahead of the
\ntarget year because the ASEAN Free Trade Area, whereby tariffs will be
\ncut down to a range of 0-15 percent, is scheduled to be fully realized
\nin the year 2009. In fact, the ASEAN economic ministers meeting in
\nChiang Mai in the middle of this month will look into the possibility of
\naccelerating the AFTA process and expanding its coverage to include
\nunprocessed agricultural commodities and services to bring it fully into
\nconformity with the new GATT agreements.<\/p>\n
We think, therefore, that the coming APEC Economic Leaders Meeting in
\nBogor, West Java, in the middle of November should endorse the proposed
\nfree and open trade and investment for implementation according to the
\ntime schedules prescribed by the expert task force. Delaying a decision
\non such an important agenda, may weaken the momentum of the APEC process
\nand make the forum less meaningful for the economic development of its
\nmembers.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/apecs-trade-vision-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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