Following adoption in 2015 of the APEC Services Cooperation Framework, APEC announced an APEC Services Competitiveness Roadmap in 2016. The Roadmap sets out concrete actions and mutually agreed targets to facilitate services trade and investment and enhance the competitiveness of the services sector across APEC economies. The targets are:
- Increasing openness of services markets in the region, through removal of substantially all restrictions on trade in services by 2025, with limited number of legitimate exceptions;
- Raising trade in services so that by 2025, exports and imports of services from APEC as a whole increase by more than the historic compound average annual growth rate of 6.8 percent;
- Increasing the share (%) of trade in services in the total exports and imports of APEC economies so that it exceeds the average level of the services trade share in world trade by 2025;
- Increasing the share (%) of value-added of the services sector in the total GDP of the APEC region so that it exceeds the global average level by 2025.
The Mid-Term Review (MTR) of the APEC Services Competitiveness Roadmap (ASCR) takes place in 2021. The APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC) undertook a major piece of research in 2021 in order to provide solid business input into the MTR. The Report is available at 2021 Mid-Term Review of the APEC Services Competitiveness Roadmap: Business Assessment of Outcomes and Recommended Roadmap Adjustments. And the Executive Summary of the ABAC report can be separately downloaded here.
ASR Director Jane Drake-Brockman presented the Report to the APEC Group on Services Trade Policy Dialogue on 19 May 2021. The Agenda is available here, the PowerPoint presentation is available here.
A 15 minute video presentation of highlights from the Report is available here.
Asia Pacific Services Coalition (APSCo)
The Asia-Pacific Services Coalition (APSCo) is the world’s largest coalition of services industries. It was formed in 2015 when APEC ratcheted services to high priority on the APEC agenda.
Its mission is to foster growth and efficiency in all services sectors through trade and investment, innovation and skills development, and pro-growth regulation in all APEC economies.
The APSCo has an official role, conferred by APEC Leaders, to monitor and evaluate progress towards the services targets adopted in the APEC Services Competitiveness Roadmap 2016-2025.
Implementation of the Roadmap will deliver benefits for all services organisations doing business in Asia-Pacific markets. Read more→
Benefits for ASR Members
ASR played a leading role in the creation of APSCo and is its co-convenor, providing Secretariat functions. This leadership role enhances ASR’s credibility and network in the APEC community.
ASR’s reputation for effective business advocacy in the APEC arena enhances ASR’s value for members. – APSCo amplifies ASR members’ influence in the most important inter-governmental economic integration process underway in Asia Pacific.
As a trusted and proven contributor to regional economic diplomacy, APSC is a useful vehicle for ASR members’ pursuit of commercial interests in regional markets.
ASR’s participation in APSCo amplifies members’ profile with the Australian Government and opens doors to high-level policy and regulatory consultation opportunities and high-level regional Public Private Dialogue.
APSCo also offers ASR members a unique mechanism for business visits and showcasing of business capabilities in both East Asia and the Western Hemisphere. ASR members have access via APSCo to a directory of services business contact points and an entrée in 20 other regional services markets.
ASR members benefit from a network of friendly business and government relationships built up over more than 15 years of dedicated attention in ASR.
ASR members gain from being inside the domestic policy consultation process as the Australian Government takes steps to enhance the competitiveness of the Australian services industries, consistent with its APEC commitments.
In regional markets, ASR members benefit by association with APSCo’s concerted evidence-based advocacy, which is helping to shape the policy and regulatory reforms that will deliver enhanced market access, ease the costs of doing business and drive future business growth. Read more→
2017 Meeting of the APSCo
On 2-3 October 2017, the Malaysian Services Providers Confederation hosted the 3rd annual meeting of the Asia Pacific Services Coalition in Kuala Lumpur in the context of a 2 day Asia-Pacific Digital Trade Symposium and APEC Group on Services Public Private Dialogue (PPD) on “New technologies and the APEC Services Competitiveness Roadmap”.
This was the first APSC meeting to take place after APEC’s adoption of the APEC Services Competitiveness Roadmap and its Implementation Plan and provided the first formal opportunity for APSC to assess the progress to date and provide input into APEC’s monitoring and evaluation activities. As set out in the Meeting Notes the Chairs of both the APEC Group on Services and the APEC Ad Hoc Stakeholder Group on the Internet Economy attended the meeting. APSCo issued a Media Release and a letter to the Chair of APEC Senior Officials 2017
On behalf of APSCo, the President of ASR provided a Report on the 2017 PPD Outcomes to the APEC Group on Services in Port Moresby on 1 March 2018. Read more→