PUTRAJAYA: September 29, 2020 saw the Second Virtual Senior Officials' Meeting (VSOM2) chaired by Hairil Yahri Yaacob, the Deputy Secretary General under the Ministry of International Trade and Industry.
This virtual meeting held on Tuesday is a sign of Malaysia's commitment as the host of Apec 2020. The deliverables that are crucial for Apec 2020 were the main focus, with only 53 more days to the Apec Economic Leaders' Meeting (AELM). Discussions were centred around the Apec programme's workflow to ensure that deadlines were met.
In his opening remarks, Hairil Yahri Yaacob stressed the prioritisation of the establishment of Apec COVID-19 LIVE by the Ministers' Responsible for Trade (MRT) before the AELM.
Recognising how the pandemic poses unprecedented challenges, Apec COVID-19 LIVE is a digital information-sharing platform designed to capture policy interventions, measures, programmes and initiatives adopted by Apec Economies.
It aims to expedite economic rebound by developing a coordinated approach to collecting and sharing information on policies and measures, including stimulus packages for the immediate responses to the economic crisis and long-term recovery packages.
Other key deliverables and outcome documents include the Apec Internet and Digital Economy Roadmap (AIDER) Work Programme, final assessment on Bogor Goals, Apec Connectivity Blueprint Mid-term Review, the final assessment of Apec Strategy for Strengthening Quality Growth, and the establishment of the Sub-fund for Apec Cooperation on Combating COVID-19 and Economic Recovery.
"We must embrace the spirit of cooperation and collaboration in concretising the earlier-mentioned deliverables, in time for our Leader's Meeting," added Hairil.
Additionally, as the AELM will now take place two weeks in advance of the earlier schedule, they will proceed ahead with the Concluding Senior Officials' Meeting (CSOM) in November, marking this meeting as the last SOM.