3 April 2013 Media release

Registrations open for USNZ 2013 Pacific Partnership Forum

Join Major Business and Government Leaders in Washington, DC - May 19-21
The USNZ 2013 Pacific Partnership Forum to be held in Washington, DC from May 19 - 21 at the Grand Hyatt Hotel has opened for registration.

The Forum will bring together New Zealand and US game-changing leaders from business, government, and non-profit organizations to explore the next opportunities for economic growth and cooperation.
The line up of speakers includes former US Trade Representative and President of the World Bank, Bob Zoellick.

The programme opens on Sunday evening 19 May at the US Institute of Peace overlooking the Mall. The format for the Forum will see it open each day with a plenary session. On Monday this will focus on Security and Foreign Policy and on Tuesday an impressive panel will address Business, Trade and Investment.

Following these discussions there will be a choice of six stimulating concurrent sessions to attend:
o Agriculture - from farm to fork,
o Cities of the Future - lessons on recovery and growth from Christchurch,
o Security - making the region and our neighbourhoods safer,
o Creativity - what other sectors can learn from the film industry,
o Environment - clean tech, green tech, and
o Research Science and Medicine - making life better.

The USNZ Council has extended invitations to the Obama Cabinet and to senior officials in all the major US agencies, particularly at USTR and the State Department. All the USNZ Council members are expected to send representatives and other iconic American companies have been invited to attend; companies such as Microsoft, General Electric, Lockheed Martin and McDonalds.

The 2013 Forum will be the fifth gathering of its kind. It comes at a time when countries and companies will compete to discover, define and deliver the next opportunities in the Asia-Pacific region and is likely to be a particularly important time in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations,” said Suse Reynolds, Associate Director of the NZUS Council.

Register at http://www.regonline.com/builder/site/default.aspx?EventID=1199692.

ENDS

The New Zealand United States Council is committed to fostering and developing a strong and mutually beneficial relationship between New Zealand and the United States. Founded in 2001, the Council is an advocate for the expansion of trade and economic links between the two countries including a comprehensive free trade agreement achieved either bilaterally or in the context of an expanded Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP). The Council works closely with business groups in New Zealand and with government agencies, especially the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade and the New Zealand Embassy in Washington. For more information, visit: www.nzuscouncil.com

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