Terminal 2, Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA)
November 8, 2017
President Rodrigo Roa Duterte departed the country today to attend the 25th Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders’ Meeting (AELM) in Da Nang City, Vietnam.
In his speech, the President highlighted the importance of the meeting in securing the economic future of the nation and in strengthening the bilateral relations between the 21 APEC Member Economies.
“I have accepted the invitation to speak to APEC CEOs to dialogue with big businesses, sustain our economic gains and contribute to the prosperity of the larger Asia-Pacific region,” he said.
President Duterte is set to discuss, together with other APEC leaders, the continuing themes of development and economic growth, of which, according to him, will be pursued to the interest of this country by ensuring the overall security of the Asia-Pacific region against transnational crimes such as illegal drug trade, terrorism and violent extremisms, and crimes at sea.
“As a chair of ASEAN, we will use these platforms of ASEAN and APEC to promote advocacies close to the heart of every Filipino –access to international markets of our MSMEs, a comfortable life for our people, food security, connectivity, the rule of law, anti-corruption, and regional security,” the President said.
For this year, the 25th APEC Summit bears the theme: ‘Creating New Dynamism, Fostering A Shared Future’ that reflects the four priorities selected by Vietnam as host country: Promoting Sustainable, Innovative and Inclusive Growth; Deepening Regional Economic Integration; Strengthening MSMEs’ (Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises) Competitiveness and Innovation in the Digital Age; and, Enhancing Food Security and Sustainable Agriculture in Response to Climate Change.
APEC is a regional economic forum that aims to accelerate economic integration and build greater prosperity by promoting free trade and balanced, inclusive, sustainable, innovative, and secure growth for the 21 APEC Member Economies, namely: Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Chile, People’s Republic of China, Hong Kong, China, Indonesia, Japan, Republic of Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Philippines, Russia, Singapore, Chinese Taipei, Thailand, United States of America, and Vietnam.
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