MAIN PAGE | EVENTS & PROGRAMS | 2002 | IGM | AVAILABLE SPEECHES | KOSAKU INABA
PACIFIC BASIN ECONOMIC COUNCIL
MAIN PAGE | EVENTS & PROGRAMS | 2002 | IGM | AVAILABLE SPEECHES | KOSAKU INABA
Striving for Growth
in a Challenging Environment PBEC 35th International General Meeting
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia May 3-7, 2002 Kosaku Inaba Distinguished guests, members of PBEC, corporate sponsors, ladies and gentlemen: Selamat pagi. Good morning. On behalf of the Pacific Basin Economic Council, I would like to express my deep appreciation to all of you for joining us here in Kuala Lumpur on the occasion of the 35th International General Meeting of PBEC. I would like to take this opportunity to express my sincere gratitude to His Excellency Dato Seri Dr. Mahathir Mohamad, Prime Minister of Malaysia, Her Excellency Dato' Seri Ms. Rafidah Aziz, Minister of International Trade and Industry, and Honorable Datuk Abdul Razak Ramli, Secretary General of International Trade and Industry, for the unfailing goodwill and support they have shown to the organizers of this gathering. I would also like to thank the Malaysian government and business community, especially Tan Sri Dato' Haji Basir Ismail, who is a founder and former Chairman of the PBEC Malaysia member committee, and served as the conference chairman of the last Kuala Lumpur IGM in 1994. Tan Sri Basir has been a tireless supporter of PBEC and the organization has clearly benefited from his experience and business savvy based on his great stature in international business. And my sincere gratitude also goes to Tan Sri Dato' Azman Hashim, current Chairman of both the Malaysia Member Committee and the Organizing Committee, who has worked very hard to make this meeting a reality. It is barely a year since our last IGM in Tokyo, but in that time the world situation has changed at a dizzying speed, and we have experienced a number of world-shaking political and economic events. In particular, the terrorist attacks on the United States last September 11 were a grave threat to civilized society, and they have left a deep wound in the hearts of people around the world. At the same time, for corporate managers like ourselves, these events led to a renewed awareness that regional stability is essential to economic life. The terrorist attacks have not only caused a complete rethinking of security issues; they have also underscored the importance of a concerted effort by the world community to achieve peace and stability. Against this backdrop, I hope that our discussions on the theme of this year's International General Meeting, "Striving for Growth in a Challenging Environment," will point the way to needed reforms and areas of cooperation so that the Asia-Pacific region, which has long been a mainstay of world growth, may continue to share its growth and prosperity with the rest of the world. During the last decade of the twentieth century, astonishing advances in technology made it possible for information of every kind to circle the globe instantaneously. Globalization rapidly became part of our everyday lives. These trends are especially obvious in the economic sphere, where, for example, they have led to the birth of the European common currency, the euro, and have accelerated other movements toward regional integration, such as the concept of the FTAA, a free-trade area extending throughout the Americas. In Asia, as the region recovered from a monetary crisis, its economies clearly recognized the need to further strengthen their economic bases and achieve closer international cooperation. Thus, promoting open intraregional cooperation in Asia, centered on Japan, China, South Korea, and the ASEAN countries, is currently an issue that ranks high on the agenda. A potential obstacle to such cooperation is the problem of growing economic disparities in the Asia Pacific region amid globalization. We need to address this question seriously, since a widening of economic gaps in Asia could affect even regional stability. Many economies and regions with different political, social, and cultural backgrounds coexist in the Pacific Basin. It is important to turn this diversity into a strength, recognize the opportunities presented by ongoing economic globalization, and close the gaps among the region's economies through free and open economic activity. I believe that supporting such activity is one of the roles that PBEC is expected to play. To that end, PBEC will continue to actively encourage the region's national governments and international organizations to reflect the views of local business communities in their policies in order to improve the business environment. Areas where such improvements can be made include promoting foreign investment, formulating rules and eliminating barriers for business transactions, promoting technological development and exchanges, and protecting the global environment. As the world addresses the issues facing the global economy, PBEC is also being asked to play a new role: to pass on to others the wealth of varied experience and ideas that we have amassed in the Asia-Pacific region. Ever since its inauguration in 1967, PBEC has been active as a private organization supporting trade, investment, and other economic exchanges, together with increased cooperation, among the economies in the Pacific Basin, on the basic principle that the free economic activity of the private sector drives economic development. While maintaining its independence as a strictly private organization, PBEC is also committed to making a contribution at the governmental level, for example, by making recommendations to the region's governments and international organizations, and by jointly sponsoring various events. We are greatly honored by the presence of many national leaders and government ministers at this year's International General Meeting, especially His Excellency Dato Seri Dr. Mahathir Mohamad, Prime Minister of Malaysia and Her Excellency Ms. Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, President of the Republic of the Philippines. On behalf of PBEC, I would like to express our gratitude for the kind understanding and high expectations that, more than ever before, government officials of every economy are showing toward our work. Finally, I would like to express my hope that this International General Meeting will prove to be a meaningful forum that will further strengthen existing friendly neighbor relationships and business networks and will set in motion new developments among the economies of the Pacific Basin. Thank you for your attention. Terima kasih. (Thank you.) |
![[ Official Site ]](../igmlogoblack128.gif)