1. The Foreign Ministry’s Deputy Minister for Economic Affairs Ahn Chong-ghee will attend as head delegate of the Republic of Korea the first APEC Senior Officials’ Meeting (SOM1) in 2015 to take place in Clark, the Philippines, on February 6 and 7.

* The Deputy Minister will also attend the Friends of the Chair (FoTC) on Connectivity Meeting to take place on February 5.

◦ The forthcoming SOM1 will be chaired by Laura Del Rosario, Under Secretary for International Economic Relations of the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs who serves as chair of the APEC SOMs in 2015. It will cover APEC’s major agenda items in 2015 and specific ways to implement the APEC agreements reached in 2014.

2. The Philippines has chosen the theme, “Building Inclusive Economies, Building a Better World,” for APEC in 2015, and set forth the following as four agenda items for APEC to focus on in the year: enhancing regional economic integration; fostering small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs)' participation in the regional and global economy; investing in human capital development; and building sustainable and resilient communities.

3. The upcoming meeting will cover the agenda items set forth by its chair country as well as ways to implement the measures agreed upon at the APEC Summit held in Beijing in 2014. The specific topics to be discussed are as follows:

◦ [Moving regional economic integration forward]
The participants will discuss ways to conduct the collective strategic study on ways to follow the roadmap for the proposed Free Trade Area of the Asia Pacific (FTAAP) as agreed at the APEC Summit in 2014; implement the second-phase FTAAP capacity-building project and strengthen the multilateral trade regime; increase the use of the global value chain (GVC); and reduce tariffs on environmental merchandise as agreed in 2012.

◦ [Growth and structural reform]
The officials will make comprehensive assessments on the outcome of the APEC growth strategies as well as its New Strategy for Structural Reform (ANSSR), both of which will come to an end in 2015; establish follow-up strategies to be implemented from 2016; and discuss possible projects on "Ease of Doing Business (EoDB)" aimed to create an environment favorable for business in the region.

◦ [SMEs and other matters]
The officials will discuss ways to accelerate SMEs’ entry into foreign markets; review the progress in the implementation of APEC’s connectivity blueprint; and draw up ways to work together in the service sector.

4. The ROK will seek more active participation of APEC member economies in such APEC projects as the second-phase FTAAP capacity-building project, the one designed to promote SMEs’ participation in the GVC and the EoDB project. It will also make efforts to enhance APEC member economies’ understanding on its new projects, including the one aimed to boost e-commerce. 


                Spokesperson and Deputy Minister for Public Relations of MOFA

* unofficial translation