APEC members engage in economic and technical cooperation to facilitate the development and implementation of measures that promote trade, investment and sustainable growth, bridging gaps in their level of development and available resources.
The APEC Senior Officials' Meeting (SOM) Steering Committee on Economic and Technical Cooperation (SCE) coordinates and manages the APEC members' economic and technical cooperation (ECOTECH) agenda, which is outlined in the Osaka Action Agenda. In 1996, a Framework for Strengthening Economic Cooperation and Development was adopted to guide members in implementing the Osaka Action Agenda.
The objectives of the SCE are to
- Support the implementation of APEC's ECOTECH activities by prioritizing work based on the commitments made by Leaders and Ministers, and overseeing the work of APEC fora
- Provide policy guidance on ways to contribute to APEC's ECOTECH goals
- Coordinate ECOTECH objectives and priorities between the APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting and the APEC ministerial meetings
In 2010, Senior Officials endorsed a new Framework to Guide ECOTECH Activities for APEC-funded capacity building and other ECOTECH activities. This framework adopted a holistic approach by
- Revising APEC ECOTECH priorities
- Introducing a uniform set of criteria for all project funding, where funding is based on the link between proposals and APEC’s core objectives
Within this framework, the following medium-term ECOTECH priorities are established for the period of 2015–2019:
Crosscutting priorities
- Developing human capital through capacity building
- Developing and strengthening the dynamism of SMEs
- Harnessing technologies for the future and supporting innovation
- Inclusive growth—addressing the social dimension of globalization, health and gender
Workstream priorities
- Regional economic integration
- Structural reform
- Safeguarding the quality of life through sustainable growth
- Human security
In addition, the SCE serves a coordinating role between its sub-fora to further host year goals and priorities.
The SCE was first established as the SOM Sub-Committee for Economic and Technical Cooperation in 1998. In 2002, the sub-committee was elevated to the SOM Committee on Economic and Technical Cooperation. In 2005, the ESC was strengthened and transformed into the SOM Steering Committee on ECOTECH (SCE).
In 2012, the SCE conducted an internal review of its working mechanisms and new terms of reference was endorsed and reconfirmed in 2020.
Under the SCE are 14 sub-fora:
- Agricultural Technical Cooperation Working Group (ATCWG)
- Anti-Corruption and Transparency Experts’ Working Group (ACWG)
- Emergency Preparedness Working Group (EPWG)
- Energy Working Group (EWG)
- Experts Group on Illegal Logging and Associated Trade (EGILAT)
- Health Working Group (HWG)
- Human Resource Development Working Group (HRDWG)
- Oceans and Fisheries Working Group (OFWG)
- Policy Partnership on Science, Technology and Innovation (PPSTI)
- Policy Partnership for Women and the Economy (PPWE)
- Small and Medium Enterprises Working Group (SMEWG)
- Telecommunications and Information Working Group (TELWG)
- Tourism Working Group (TWG)
- Transportation Working Group (TPTWG)
Last page update: February 2022
Contacts
APEC Senior Official
Assistant to the SCE Chair 2022
APEC Officer and Economic Policy Advisor
Office of Economic Policy
Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs
U.S. Department of State
Email: [email protected]
Program Director
Current Activities
The SCE remains actively involved in coordinating issues across its sub-fora and between SCE sub-fora and other committees. In addition, the SCE is examining various crosscutting issues such as advancing inclusive and sustainable economic growth. The SCE is currently overseeing projects on the bio-circular-green economy model and innovative waste management.
Promotion of crosscutting agenda
The SCE and the APEC Secretariat have been facilitating cross-forum collaboration through the SCE Committee of the Whole (COW), through the Lead-Shepherds and Chairs’ Meeting and through identifying areas to create synergies for cooperation.
The SCE has continued to promote such collaborations. These efforts have seen a marked increase in the number of crosscutting agendas across SCE fora and APEC Committees.