APEC Seminar Series

Singapore APEC Study Centre Seminar on 12 July 2011

On 12 July, the Singapore APEC Study Centre at ISEAS will be hosting the following seminar by Associate Professor Hikari Ishido, Visiting Researcher, ISEAS, and Head of the APEC Study Centre at Chiba University, Japan, on the topic:

Is Open Regionalism Economically Feasible? A Critical Appraisal of the Trans-Pacific Strategic Economic Partnership Agreement (TPP)

You are cordially invited to attend the following seminar. For further details and registration, please click the link below:

Click here for the event details.

 

“APEC at 20: The End of Innocence,” 27 April 2009 

APEC turns 20 at a time of great convulsion in the world economy. Will this unique experiment in trans-Pacific intergovernmental cooperation survive the shift in global economic and political weight towards Asia? According to the Pacific Economic Cooperation Council’s 2008 State of the Region survey, 75 percent of opinion leaders in the region cited “lack of commitment” by member economies to be an important challenge for APEC. How will APEC come to terms with the Bogor target of “free and open trade” for developed economies by 2010, and what will be its raison d’etre in the years to come? What are the challenges for trans-Pacific institution building and economic cooperation in the years ahead? These were some of the key issues that Mr. Woo Yuen Pau, President of the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada, and Chair of Canada PECC highlighted and discussed at this seminar. 

Mr Woo’s PowerPoint presentation

 

“APEC: Relevant or Passé,” 16 March 2009

Following the Asian financial crisis of 1997, Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) was criticised as being little more than a talkfest that failed to act to help its member economies directly affected by the crisis. In the midst of the current global financial crisis and economic slowdown, can APEC make a meaningful contribution to the recovery of the Asia-Pacific region? Ambassador Michael Tay, Executive Director of the APEC Secretariat based in Singapore, shared his thoughts and led the discussion on this issue in a public seminar hosted by the Singapore APEC Study Centre last 16 March 2009 in ISEAS."

	Summary of Ambassador Tay’s presentation
	News coverage of the event:
	APEC Secretariat to Have Fixed-Term Executive Director Based on interview with Ambassador Tay (16 March 2009, 1522 hrs; MediaCorp Radio 938LIVE)
	Role of APEC in Global Economic Crisis Based on interview with Ambassador Tay, Professor John McKay, and Dr Melanie Milo (19th March 2009, 1330 hrs; MediaCorp Radio 938LIVE)

 

 

 

 

 

“The Trans-Pacific Strategic Economic Partnership Agreement and its Implications for Regional Economic Integration in the Asia-Pacific,” 14 October 2008

The Trans-Pacific Strategic Economic Partnership Agreement, also known as the P4, is a plurilateral free trade agreement between the countries of Brunei, Chile, New Zealand and Singapore. P4 is the first plurilateral trade agreement with a trans-Pacific membership and it came into effect from 2006. One of its objectives is to contribute to Asia-Pacific wide regional economic integration, by serving as a model trade agreement for the region that could potentially attract new members. Dr Robert Scollay, Associate Professor and Director of APEC Study Centre, University of Auckland, discussed P4 and the latest developments, and their implications on trade in the region, including P4’s potential as a building block towards the establishment of free trade in the Asia-Pacific region.

 

Other APEC-related events

“Taiwan in the Era of New Regionalism: Implications and Prospects,” 17 June 2009 

Taiwan - Southeast Asia Roundtable, Institute of Southeast Asian Studies

The Institute of Southeast Asian Studies organized a closed-door roundtable on Taiwan-Southeast Asia last 17 June 2009. The roundtable had two sessions, which focused on: (i) areas of economic cooperation between Taiwan and Southeast Asia, and (ii) the role of Taiwan in East Asian economic integration and APEC. One of the presenters in the second session was Dr Johnny Chi-chen Chiang, Director of Taiwan Institute of Economic Research’s Division of International Affairs, which also incorporates the Chinese Taipei APEC Study Center. Dr Chiang’s presentation looked at the evolving regionalism in the Asia-Pacific region, and its implications on Taiwan.

Dr. Chiang’s PowerPoint presentation