United Nations (UN) resident coordinator Roy Trivedy said opportunities posed by hosting the APEC next year should not be limited to investments in the country, but broadened to include investment opportunities in the other APEC member states.
Mr Trivedy made reference to expansion testimonies of PNG businesses venturing out into the Asia-Pacific region to tap into the broader business opportunities on offer.
“If you look at the BSP story, the Bank of South Pacific is now investing in South East Asia.
“If you look at Duffy’s investing in China, so we need APEC not just to create an investment environment here just to get the 10,000 visitors of APEC to invest in Papua New Guinea, but to create opportunities for our business everywhere.”
Mr Trivedy also said that the target for APEC should be set rather than just a blanket statement of investment opportunities that has been echoed throughout since PNG’s hosting of the event.
“We need to set out what our targets are for APEC. What do we want to really achieve from that. It is not enough to say we want to achieve and we want more investment, but by how much more do we want it.
“Let’s set our targets and learn to achieve them. Politically, this next 18 months is vital because in parliament there is a veto on the no confidence vote.
“So this 100 day plan and what the government achieves during the first 18 months will determine whether the population has confidence in our leadership and so on.”