The Golden Gate Declaration aims for a resilient and sustainable future for all

“We must harness technological and economic progress to further unleash the region’s enormous potential and dynamism, spur economic growth, and address all environmental challenges, including climate change,” the statement said.

The declaration was adopted after a two-day meeting, during which leaders focused on the themes of sustainability, climate, energy transition, connectivity and building inclusive and resilient economies. Leaders reaffirmed their determination to deliver a free, open, fair, non-discriminatory, transparent, inclusive and predictable trade and investment environment. The meeting also reaffirmed the importance of the rules-based multilateral trading system, with the World Trade Organization (WTO) at its core, continuing to drive strong growth in the APEC region. APEC economies also committed to strengthening capacity building efforts and technical cooperation to support participation in comprehensive and high-quality regional commitments.

The meeting between leaders is the focus of the APEC Summit Week, held in San Francisco from November 11 to 17 under the theme “Creating a resilient and sustainable future for all”.

During APEC week, on November 17, APEC trade and foreign ministers pledged to support WTO reform, including reform of the organization's dispute settlement function. In a statement after the meeting, the ministers stated that to ensure the "important role" of the WTO, "we support reform of this organization to improve all functions of the WTO, so that members can better implement the organization's fundamental objectives and address current and emerging global trade challenges."

“Over the past few days, we have worked together to find ways to build inclusive, resilient, and sustainable economies for the Asia-Pacific region. We have also addressed the progress that requires cooperation. Together, we have outlined the work we can do together to prevent the worst impacts of the climate crisis,” said US President Joe Biden, who chaired the summit.

Mr. Biden stressed that APEC economies need to do more in areas including inclusive growth, interconnected growth and technology. “Together, we must ensure that change is for the better, ensuring that digital technologies, such as artificial intelligence (AI), are used to enhance quality without limiting our human potential,” he urged.

During APEC week, delegates participated in high-level meetings and side events with key stakeholders on a range of topics, including supply chain resilience; science, research and innovation; critical and emerging technologies; clean energy; high-standard infrastructure; women’s economic empowerment; and inclusion.

During the closing ceremony, the US also transferred APEC hosting responsibilities to Peru, which will host APEC conferences in 2024./

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