APEC Wants Fast Action on E-Commerce
Rt Hon Don McKinnon
New Zealand Minister for
International Trade
Chair, APEC Ministerial
Meeting
APEC Ministers have approved measures to move more
rapidly towards paperless trading throughout the region, the
Rt Hon Don McKinnon said today.
APEC aims to achieve
paperless trading by 2005 for developed member economies and
2010 for developing ones, he said.
"Ministers want
higher priority given to this work, and economies will be
encouraged to incorporate the paperless trading initiative
into their Individual Action Plans. Ministers also want
working groups to give higher priority to the initiative, by
formulating collective actions that all economies can use to
move closer to meeting the paperless trading goals."
Ministers agreed electronic commerce was a potential
catalyst for economic growth. The primary role of the public
sector is to remove impediments to electronic commerce. To
this end, Ministers have asked the APEC Electronic Steering
Group to progress with a planning tool, allowing member
economies to chart their individual readiness in this area.
"The planning tool will prove useful for economies,
cities and communities wanting to identify problems and
develop strategies so they can make full use of e-commerce,"
Mr McKinnon said.
"Ministers want APEC economies to
compare progress and share information. They want work to
start on consumer protection, focusing on information
sharing, benchmarking and best practices to fulfil APEC¡¦s
aim of building trust and confidence in e-commerce.
"They
agree the best way to achieve this is for the APEC
Electronic Commerce Steering Group to work closely with
private sector groups. Joint demonstration projects with the
business sector are being encouraged, so everyone can
benefit from various experiences around the region.
APEC
Ministers recommended the United Nations Commission for
International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) be used when laying
regulatory e-commerce foundations.
"Proper legal
frameworks will inspire more confidence and trust in the use
of e-commerce. We ask APEC economies to consider adopting
UNCITRAL guidelines when creating or amending e-commerce
related legislation."
For further enquiries
contact:
Jo Coughlan
Press Secretary, Minister of
Foreign Affairs and Trade
Phone 025 405082