APEC needs to identify trade, investment barriers

APEC needs to identify trade, investment barriers

JAKARTA (JP): The working group on small and medium sized
enterprises within the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC)
forum yesterday ended its two-day meeting with recommendations
for intensive study of trade and investment barriers in the
region.

"The group, involving 72 officials and experts from the 17
APEC members, has assigned a special committee on trade and
investment to identify both barriers and general policies related
to the small and medium businesses in the region," Minister of
Cooperatives and Small Enterprises Subiakto Tjakrawerdaya told
reporters after closing the meeting

The minister said the studies' proceedings will be submitted
to senior officials meetings scheduled to be held in May and
October. These meetings will seek to hammer out agreements on
supporting smaller scale business in the region.

"We hope that the meeting of trade ministers in October in
Japan will formulate a final draft on the cooperation for the
next APEC summit in Indonesia in November," he said.

Subiakto also said the group recommended that the APEC
secretariat begin collecting information on smaller businesses.

"The secretariat is expected to exchange information among the
members," he said.

Success

He also said that the working group is committed to
publicizing the successes of governments in developing small and
medium businesses.

"The successful scheme can be a model for other members to
develop small and medium enterprises," he said, adding that
Indonesia will present its nucleus-estate-and-smallholders scheme
for plantation development.

In addition, the group called on the International Monetary
Fund (IMF), World Bank, International Finance Corporation (IFC)
and Asian Development Bank (ADB), to realign their policies to
favor financing for small and medium businesses.

"The hard problem faced by small and medium enterprises in the
region is the availability of funds. But, we can see that almost
80 percent of the business in the region is generated by small
entities," he said.

The meeting recommended that APEC work towards rectifying the
problem.

The group also urged advanced countries to transfer technology
to the region's small businesses, he said. (fhp)