DFA Hosts APEC Project Proposal Drafting Workshop

Assistant Secretary Leo Herrera-Lim officially welcomes the attendees. (DFA OUIER photo)

PASAY CITY 25 April 2019 — Some 30 organizations represented by about 60 government officials, members of the academe and private sector representatives attended the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Project Proposal Drafting Workshop on 22 March 2019 at Midas Hotel in Pasay City.

Organized by the Secretariat of the Technical Board on APEC Matters (TBAM), the workshop aimed to equip stakeholders with information and knowledge on securing APEC funding for various capacity-building projects

Led by the Department of Foreign Affairs’s Office of the Undersecretary for International Economic Relations (DFA-OUIER), the seminar-workshop focused on facilitating writing concept notes and project proposals for activities aligned with the Philippine Development Agenda and APEC Goals and priorities.

The workshop serves to provide advice and guidance to Philippine agencies in the preparation and approval of project proposals submitted for APEC funding and/or endorsement.  It also took on an inclusive agenda with the participation of stakeholders from the private sector to better respond to the need for closer coordination in the formulation and execution of the Philippines’ international economic cooperation and development policies.

On behalf of DFA-OUIER Officer-in-Charge Lourdes O. Yparraguirre, Assistant Secretary Leo Herrera-Lim officially welcomed the attendees and encouraged participants to develop projects that would be beneficial not only to the Philippines but also to the APEC region.

Philippines APEC Program Director Joyce Marison Camacho and DFA Maritime and Ocean Affairs Acting Director Jay Francis Alcantara served as resource speakers for the workshop, with DFA-OUIER Assistant Director Oliver Delfin serving as moderator. DFA-OUIER Director Eric Gerardo Tamayo noted that APEC Projects is a key element of the APEC process that create tangible benefits at the grassroots level for the people in the Asia-Pacific region.

APEC projects are primarily focused on transferring knowledge and skills between members and building capacity. This is in line with the APEC Bogor Goals of free and open trade and investment by the end of 2020.

Projects may cover activities that help promote and accelerate regional economic integration, encourage economic and technical cooperation, enhance human security, and facilitate a favourable and sustainable business environment.

APEC funds around 100 projects each year, with around US$15.4 million having been made available as of 2018. END

Resource speakers and 60 participants to the first DFA-sponsored seminar-workshop for government agencies, academe and the private sector on writing concept notes and project proposals for APEC-funded initiatives on capacity-building. (DFA OUIER photo)