APEC Services and Structural Reform

Services and Structural Reform in APEC

An APEC cross-fora project aiming to make services regulation and policy reform in favour of openness a central focus of APEC’s structural reform agenda.

This site is divided into four main sections.

These can be navigated to via the menu in the top right. This site is intended to be a resource for policy makers with interests in structural reform and services, researchers/academics and their students in the field, and business people seeking a deeper appreciation of policy debates and how they might affect their enterprise and operations.

About

The ABOUT page explains further information on the formation of the Services and Structural Reform Project, and its links to the Enhanced APEC Agenda for Structural Reform and the APEC Services Competitiveness Roadmap.

Learning

The LEARNING page displays a number of short, relevant clips and key messages from Services and Structural Reform experts across the Asia Pacific.

Research

The RESEARCH page contains detailed Policy briefs and other research documentation published under the Services and Structural Reform Project.

Events

The EVENTS page houses the full recordings of the events held throughout the project, along with agenda documents and session summaries (many of the learning page items are also embedded in these recordings)

Research

The focus of the Policy Brief is the contribution of structural reform efforts to the develop of competitiveness in the services sector. The first part reviews recent developments in services growth and trade, drawing attention to a sustained pervasive underlying structural shift to services in the global and regional economy. This includes analysis of the nature of the services sector and the ongoing evolution of its value-adding activities. The second part identifies the drivers of competitiveness against the background of which we derive a schematic whole-of-government framework for services policy making. The third and final part highlights the value of cooperation among economies in the implementation of this framework, and the particular role that APEC can play.

Learning

Key messages and takeaways from Services and Structural Reform experts.

Events

A number of events have been held to build capacity, increase understanding of relevant APEC fora, and built momentum for a further work program.

These events have covered:

The role of structural reform in driving economic growth and regional integration, highlighting the importance of enhancing services competitiveness to boost regional trade and investment performance. They have also reviewed the history of APEC’s attention to the interaction of digitalization, structural adjustment and reform initiatives in the services sectors, and the need for cross-fora collaboration and stakeholder engagement to deliver enhanced services productivity along with deeper and more inclusive regional integration
The role of structural reform in driving economic growth and regional integration.
Lessons learnt from recent structural reform developments in the regional trade and economic environment.
The nature of innovation in the services sector, and the increasing importance of digitalization and access to data flows.
Online platforms and the policy issues that arise relating to structural reform.
Sources of resilience and their links to productivity growth and inclusion; how they can be successfully linked into a structural reform program, with a focus on services.

About Us

This APEC cross-fora project aims to make services regulation and policy reform in favour of openness a central focus of APEC’s structural reform agenda.

It highlights and increases awareness of the scale of the services sector and how it can contribute to the region’s responses to both recovery and long run productivity growth.

The APEC Services and Structural Reform project is a joint initiative of the APEC Economic Committee and the APEC Group on Services.

Policy Brief Outline

Section 1

Offers an extended overview of much of the material in the Brief, including a snapshot of the services sector and trade in services in the APEC region. It identifies the scope of barriers to trade, and explains why services liberalization and structural reform go hand in hand. It outlines relevant tools which APEC already has in place, and notes the Ministerial Mandate for further cooperation in the application of those tools.

Section 2

Highlights the linkages between digitalization and services competitiveness. In the context of the development and application of new digital technology, it reports on key factors that enable a successful transformation to the new economy. It identifies policy implications from this framework.

Section 3

Recalls the previous APEC work on services and structural reform, and notes how the experience of the pandemic has strengthened some of the earlier recommendations but also added to that list. It provides further discussion of the design and successful operation of a program of structural reform, and focuses on the contribution of cooperation among economies in that effort.

Section 4

Reviews various forms of international cooperation which are relevant to structural reform focussed on services competitiveness in the context of the digital transformation, particularly in the WTO. With this background, the chapter concludes with attention to the especially valuable special contributions that can be made by the APEC process.