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At the request of the State Department, the National Center for APEC is coordinating the search for three senior executives to represent the United States business community as members of the APEC Business Advisory Council from the beginning of 2025 through the end of 2027. The attached information sheet and letter from U.S. Senior Official for APEC Ambassador Matt Murray describe the required qualifications and outlines the time and resource commitments required for ABAC membership.

The goal of this search is to give every qualified executive willing to be an ABAC member an opportunity to declare their interest to represent the U.S. private sector and to give the White House a broad range of candidates from which to choose.

Interested executives should provide a résumé and a company profile to the National Center for APEC by June 28, 2024. NCAPEC will pass all information to the State Department for vetting and selection. If you have any questions or would like more details on the time and resource commitments, please contact Alex Parle, Executive Vice President, info@ncapec.org, to discuss the opportunity further.

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NCAPEC is pleased to present “The State of APEC Supply Chains” report, launched in conjunction with the APEC Economic Leaders Week in November 2023.

This report was prepared by Access Partnership and features insights developed through extensive consultation with lead firms across APEC and analysis of publicly available trade data. It highlights four key product segments: consumer goods, consumer technology, food, and healthcare.

This report has also received outstanding contributions from UPS and Johnson & Johnson (J&J) and features insights from an exclusive survey of over 1,200 firms across 15 APEC economies to understand the current state of resilience in the four key product segments.

Read the report here.

The top 5 takeaways of the report are:

1. APEC’s supply chains are long, complex, and susceptible to disruptions. Comparative advantages across the APEC’s vibrant economies have led firms to optimize their supply chains, creating greater length and complexity. Supply chains across the four key product segments vary significantly in their design and operation.

2. Recent disruptions offer lessons for policymakers and businesses. Policy responses during the pandemic reveal a lack of understanding of how global supply chains are organized, what they depend on, and how distribution of key goods to communities happens. First-hand accounts of multinational corporations – the lead firms in supply chains – provide stakeholders an opportunity to learn and prepare for future crises.

3. Post-pandemic, supply chains in APEC are more resilient – but they show cracks. Across five key dimensions of resilience, the business survey revealed that firms in APEC have mostly invested in greater supply chain visibility and adjusted their business models after the pandemic. The majority remain vulnerable in terms of flexibility and connectivity.

4. Five strategies for APEC to strengthen supply chains. These include ensuring the flow of trade and cross-border movement are maintained during disruptions; establishing a platform for regional cooperation and future-readiness; digitizing documentation, processes and logistics services; strengthening the region’s infrastructure and transportation connectivity; and developing a framework for capacity building for micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs).

5. Five strategies for firms to strengthen supply chains. These include measuring supply chain resilience today; diversifying products, customers, and suppliers; maintaining a “portfolio” of transportation options; creating more visibility, aligning with industry best practices; and joining industry advocacy efforts.

This report forms part of NCAPEC’s ongoing work on supply chain resilience. It follows the release of preliminary insights of this study at the 2^nd ABAC Meeting in Brunei in April 2023. Additional milestones in this research include the launch of an MSME Supply Chain Resilience toolkit at the 3^rd ABAC Meeting in July 2023.

Should you have any questions on this study, please contact shivin.kohli@accesspartnership.com.

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This toolkit was prepared by Access Partnership and informed by industry best practices and extensive consultation with lead firms across healthcare, food, consumer goods, and consumer technology segments in APEC.

The toolkit may be accessed here: https://supplychainresiliencetoolkit.ncapec.org/

The toolkit is designed for micro-, small-, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) to measure the resilience of their supply chains to future external shocks such as the COVID-19 pandemic and understand how they may improve their resilience through practical recommendations. It has been geared towards businesses trading in four segments across APEC: (1) Healthcare, (2) Food, (3) Consumer technology, and (4) Consumer goods.

User organizations can generate confidential profiles at the interactive dashboard for this toolkit and answer our comprehensive survey to generate their supply chain resilience reports. These reports will be organized by five “dimensions” of resilience and 27 related indicators. More information can be found in the toolkit.

This toolkit is part of NCAPEC’s ongoing work on supply chain resilience. It follows the release of NCAPEC’s study on “The State of APEC Supply Chains: Lessons Learned, Building Resilience”, launched at the 2nd ABAC Meeting in Brunei on April 27, 2023. Additional milestones in this research include the launch of a healthcare-focused segment report on the state of supply chain resilience at the Third Senior Officials Meeting (SOM3) in August 2023, and additional segment reports ahead of the APEC CEO Summit in November 2023 (TBD)

Should you have any questions on this toolkit, please contact shivin.kohli@accesspartnership.com.

The MSME Supply Chain Resilience Toolkit was developed in partnership with:

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READ THE REPORT: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/vu0qa8v8ssjtllmrikh4l/NCAPEC-State-of-Healthcare-Supply-Chains-Single.pdf?rlkey=l41sp1vjgbjbkz2x6da2hyl9v&dl=0

This report was prepared by Access Partnership and informed by extensive consultation with leading firms in the healthcare segment. In particular, the report has outstanding contributions from Johnson & Johnson (J&J) and UPS. It also features an exclusive survey of over 300 healthcare firms across 15 APEC markets to understand the current state of resilience.

The top five takeaways of the report are:

1. Healthcare supply chains in APEC are highly integrated and susceptible to disruptions. Supply chains display significant vertical integration and specialisation. The pandemic and ensuing logistics constraints created significant coordination challenges.
2. Supply chains are resilient – but they show cracks. Surveyed firms have invested heavily in building visibility over supply chains and incorporating robust business practices, but lack flexibility in terms of products, customers, suppliers, and transportation options.
3. The pandemic offers important lessons for the future. APEC and policymakers can harmonize regulations, expedite cross-border flows, and shore up trade infrastructure. Businesses can invest in transparency, reorient distribution models, and focus on flexibility.
4. Five strategies can help APEC to foster resilient healthcare supply chains. These include establishing trade and movement of essential personnel as key priorities, creating APEC-level response guidelines, speeding up physical and digital connectivity, encouraging economy-wide taskforces for supply chain flexibility, and supporting capacity building for MSMEs.
5. Five strategies for healthcare firms to bolster supply chains. These include measuring supply chain resilience today, focusing on flexibility and diversification, creating more visibility, aligning with industry best practices, and joining industry advocacy efforts.

This report forms part of NCAPEC’s ongoing work on supply chain resilience. It follows the release of NCAPEC’s study on “The State of APEC Supply Chains: Lessons Learned, Building Resilience,” launched at the 2nd ABAC Meeting in Brunei on 27 April 2023. Additional milestones in this research include the launch of an MSME Supply Chain Resilience toolkit at the 3rd APEC Business Advisory Council Meeting (ABAC-III) in the Philippines last week and additional segment reports ahead of the APEC CEO Summit in November 2023.

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The two-day CEO Summit will enable meaningful engagement on open trade and investment, resilience, economic inclusion, sustainability and digital transformation across the Asia-Pacific.

This news follows the announcement of the host cities for the first clusters of Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Senior Officials’ and Ministerial meetings, which include Honolulu, Hawaii in December; Palm Springs, California in February; Detroit, Michigan in May; and Seattle, Washington in July and August.

Read the Vice President’s full remarks here and follow additional APEC 2023 updates on social media (Twitter + LinkedIn).

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(Washington D.C. – September 14, 2022) – In anticipation of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) USA 2023 host year, the National Center for APEC (NCAPEC) is proud to announce the launch of the APEC 2023 Private Sector Host Committee.

As the only U.S. business organization exclusively focused on APEC, NCAPEC is excited to provide unparalleled opportunities for business executives to forge connections with global leaders and senior government officials throughout the year. Under the auspices of the Host Committee, NCAPEC will create opportunities for the private sector by developing industry-driven events that coincide with the APEC 2023 meetings, culminating in the APEC CEO Summit in fall 2023.

Since its inception in 1989, APEC has been the premier platform and incubator for innovative ideas addressing fair and open trade and investment policies. The adaptive structure of APEC, which includes direct engagement with the private sector and other stakeholders, ensures that the forum stays timely and relevant as trends in business and technology emerge and transform commerce in the region.

Each year, more than 1,500 high-level private sector representatives gather with senior government leadership to strengthen diplomatic ties and identify new ways to unlock economic opportunity, prosperity and growth. The global health, economic, and social challenges over the past several years have underscored how critically important these conversations and convenings are for bolstering public-private collaboration and fostering fair, open, inclusive and sustainable growth.

“APEC 2023 presents a unique opportunity to create a strong platform for governments to engage key stakeholders across the 21 economies that comprise APEC,” said Matt Murray, U.S. Senior Official for APEC at the U.S. Department of State.  “Public-private collaboration is critical to deepen and expand our economic ties with the fastest-growing region in the world, including in the areas of trade and investment, innovation, sustainability, and inclusive growth.”

The 2023 Host Committee includes corporate leaders from across the country representing diverse and dynamic industries and sectors, including executives from Amazon, Citi, ExxonMobil, FedEx, Google, General Motors, Johnson & Johnson, Mastercard, Meta, Microsoft, Moody’s, Organon, Qualcomm, UPS and Visa. The Host Committee is co-chaired by Mary T. Barra, Chair and Chief Executive Officer of General Motors; Alfred F. Kelly, Jr., Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Visa; and Kevin Ali, Chief Executive Officer of Organon.

“At General Motors, we are on a path to transform mobility and prove that technology and innovation, when driven by purpose, can change the world. Cooperation between the U.S. and the Asia Pacific region is essential to global connectivity, and APEC member economies are key to GM’s vision of a world with zero crashes, zero emissions, and zero congestion,” said GM CEO Mary T. Barra. “I am proud to serve as a co-chair for the APEC 2023 Private Sector Host Committee. I look forward to engaging with APEC leaders on bolstering trade, securing critical supply chains, and advancing technologies that will enable GM’s vision for a safer and more sustainable world.”

“Visa and our partners across APEC are working to build an inclusive digital economy and create greater prosperity and opportunity for everyone, everywhere,” Visa CEO Alfred F. Kelly added. “We welcome the opportunity for the U.S. to host APEC in 2023, bringing together economies across the region and demonstrating a commitment to further strengthening trade and economic ties in the Indo-Pacific.”

Organon CEO Kevin Ali echoed his sentiments, stating: “APEC continues to demonstrate that economic cooperation and dialogue are critical for advancing growth and prosperity for the region, so I am honored to serve as a co-chair of the APEC 2023 Private Sector Host Committee. We at Organon look forward to working with all stakeholders to support APEC’s commitment to increasing the health and wellbeing of people in the region, with a specific focus on equity and reducing the health-related barriers that women face.”

With the U.S. hosting APEC for the first time since 2011, NCAPEC looks forward to creating robust opportunities for business and government representatives to share meaningful and productive exchanges on policy priorities and best practices that can drive trade and achieve resilient and inclusive growth.

As U.S. Representatives David Schweikert (R-AZ) and Rick Larsen (D-WA), co-chairs of the bipartisan APEC Caucus, said in a joint statement: “the U.S. has an opportunity to help set an ambitious agenda that emphasizes free and fair trade along with investment that promotes jobs and economic growth and raises standards, including for labor, the environment, infrastructure and digital trade.”

In addition to engaging with heads of state, policy makers and subject matter experts from the U.S. and across the Asia Pacific region, the Host Committee members will have the opportunity to work strategically alongside the NCAPEC team in shaping the narrative of the APEC CEO Summit USA 2023 and defining broader private sector priorities. They will also guide dialogue around the urgent challenges facing the Asia-Pacific region and the world, and develop initiatives to address climate change and sustainability, supply chain resiliency, global health, digital connectivity, and women’s empowerment.

“We are privileged to have stakeholders from diverse disciplines and are excited to explore and provide opportunities throughout the year for them to engage with government and communities around the U.S., and with our global partners,” said Monica Hardy Whaley, President of NCAPEC.

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About APEC

Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) is a regional economic forum established in 1989 to leverage the growing interdependence of the Asia-Pacific. APEC’s 21 members aim to create greater prosperity for the people of the region by promoting balanced, inclusive, sustainable, innovative and secure growth and by accelerating economic integration in the region.

About NCAPEC

The National Center for APEC (NCAPEC) is a U.S. business association dedicated to advancing private sector policy priorities in the dynamic Asia-Pacific region. NCAPEC works closely with its membership of approximately 50 U.S. Fortune 500 companies to create opportunities to engage with key policy makers to discuss the trade, investment, and regulatory issues that impact the growth and development of the Asia-Pacific region. NCAPEC also collaborates with business associations in other APEC economies to build broad private sector coalitions to bolster the impact of our efforts.

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Currently, ABAC USA is represented by Dominic Ng, Chairman and CEO of East West Bank, and Laura Lane, Executive Vice President and Chief Corporate Affairs Officer at UPS. The third member has not been named. Mr. Ng will serve as the ABAC Chair during the U.S. host year in 2023.

New U.S. APEC Business Advisory Council Member Appointment: Dominic Ng – U.S. State Department

The United States welcomes the appointment of Dominic Ng, Chairman and CEO of East West Bank, to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Business Advisory Council (ABAC).

Mr. Ng and his ABAC counterparts from the other APEC economies will advise APEC Leaders on issues affecting the continued growth of the region’s economy.  In this role, Mr. Ng will provide recommendations reflecting the perspective of U.S. stakeholders.  ABAC, created in 1995, consists of up to three business representatives from each APEC economy and is a key component of APEC’s multi-stakeholder approach to trade and economic policies.  ABAC meets throughout the year to discuss policy recommendations, undertakes activities to promote trade and investment as well as sustainable and inclusive growth, and reports annually to APEC Leaders.

Mr. Ng leads East West Bank, the largest publicly-listed independent bank headquartered in Southern California.  Since joining the Bank in 1991, Mr. Ng transformed East West from a small savings and loan association with $600 million in assets into a global full-service commercial bank with assets over $62 billion today.  Its 3,200 employees serve more than 600,000 customers worldwide.  Bank Director ranked East West Bank No.1 Performing Bank in 2021 and top bank with the Best Board in 2022.  Mr. Ng serves on the governing boards of Mattel, Inc., the University of Southern California, and the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures.  He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and a board member of the 21st Century China Center of the University of California, San Diego.  He is a former Chairman of the Committee of 100.  Mr. Ng’s previous board service also includes the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, Los Angeles Branch; PacifiCare Health Systems; Asia Society; and the United Way of Greater Los Angeles.

Among the extensive recognitions for his business achievements and philanthropic impact, Mr. Ng was named one of Forbes’ 25 most notable Chinese Americans; one of Los Angeles Times’100 most influential people in Los Angeles; and Business Person of the Year by the Los Angeles Business Journal. American Banker recognized Mr. Ng as Banker of the Year for successfully executing his vision while maintaining credit discipline and building East West into one of the nation’s most profitable regional banks.

For more than 30 years, APEC has served as the premier economic platform for the United States to engage our regional partners on structural issues to advance an economic and trade architecture that opens markets, promotes high standards, and promotes sustainable and inclusive growth.

New U.S. APEC Business Advisory Council Member Appointment: Laura Lane – U.S. State Department

The United States welcomes the appointment of Laura Lane, Executive Vice President (EVP) and Chief Corporate Affairs Officer at the United Parcel Service (UPS), to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Business Advisory Council (ABAC).

Ms. Lane and her ABAC counterparts from the other APEC economies will advise APEC Leaders on issues affecting the continued growth of the region’s economy. In this role, Ms. Lane will provide recommendations reflecting the perspective of U.S. stakeholders. ABAC, created in 1995, consists of up to three business representatives from each APEC economy and is a key component of APEC’s multi-stakeholder approach to trade and economic policies. ABAC meets throughout the year to discuss policy recommendations, undertakes activities to promote trade and investment, as well as sustainable and inclusive growth, and reports annually to APEC Leaders.

In her role as EVP and Chief Corporate Affairs Officer and a critical member of UPS’s Executive Leadership Team, Ms. Lane oversees the company’s Public Policy and Government Affairs, Communications, Sustainability, Community Relations Division, as well as The UPS Foundation. Ms. Lane has served in both the U.S. private and public sectors, with extensive experience in government, financial services, media and information-communications, and logistics, enabling her to represent the broad range of interests of U.S. businesses, including small-and women-owned businesses.

Prior to joining UPS, Ms. Lane served as Managing Director and Head of International Government Affairs at Citigroup and Vice President for Global Public Policy at Time Warner. In her government career, Ms. Lane served as a trade negotiator in the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative and as a diplomat in the U.S. Foreign Service. Ms. Lane currently serves as a member of the board of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees USA (UNHCR-USA) and the CDC Foundation, in addition to several other U.S. business associations and nonprofits, including the Atlantic Council, The Woodruff Arts Center, and the German-American Business Council.

For more than 30 years APEC has served as the premier economic platform for the United States to engage our regional partners on structural issues to advance an economic and trade architecture that opens markets, promotes high standards, and promotes sustainable and inclusive growth.

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Later this year, the administration will select APEC 2023 themes, priorities, and deliverables that will reflect its objectives for its chairmanship. These will support implementation of the Aotearoa Plan of Action and likely incorporate long-standing U.S. priorities of sustainability, climate change, women’s economic inclusion, trade and workers, the digital economy, and trade facilitation. Where synergies exist, 2023 priorities may also align with the four pillars set out in the IPEF: fair and resilient trade rules in areas like digital trade, labor, and the environment; supply chain resilience; infrastructure and green technology; and tax and anti-corruption.

In addition to setting the substantive agenda, the U.S. will be responsible for managing the logistics for dozens of meetings between December 2022 and late fall 2023. This includes selecting the locations for Senior Officials’ Meetings (SOM), ministerial meetings, and the APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting. In 2011, the U.S. held SOMs in Washington D.C.; Big Sky, Montana; San Francisco; and Honolulu. These locations provided APEC representatives an opportunity to experience the geographic diversity of the U.S. A similar approach is expected for 2023.

Bringing APEC to the U.S. provides numerous unique opportunities for stakeholders from business, academia, and other organizations to engage directly with APEC officials. These include participation in policy dialogues that shape government deliberations on key trade and economic policies as well as site visits that provide policymakers with a firsthand view of innovative technologies and business operations. Direct engagements such as these make APEC unique among international organizations and ensures that its work is relevant to stakeholders in the Indo-Pacific region.

As Secretariat to the U.S. APEC Business Advisory Council members and for the U.S. Committee for the Pacific Economic Cooperation Council, NCAPEC is well-placed to lead the coordination of private sector engagement during APEC 2023. This includes organizing the 2023 APEC CEO Summit and creating platforms that will provide meaningful opportunities for stakeholders to engage with APEC officials and demonstrate the value the U.S. government and private sector place on maintaining strong economic ties with partners in the Asia Pacific.

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