The 33rd Asian Trade Promotion Forum (ATPF) was held in Macao on 24 September. With the theme “The development and Innovation of TPOs in the New Era”, the Forum was organised by the Macao Trade and Investment Promotion Institute (IPIM) and moderated by IPIM’s President Lau Wai Meng. Under the impact of the novel coronavirus pandemic, the ATPF meeting was held online for the first time.
Representatives of trade promotion entities from 20 Asian economies, including Australia, Bangladesh, Brunei, Cambodia, Mainland China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Laos, Macao, Malaysia, Mongolia, Pakistan, the Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, South Korea, Thailand, Taiwan and Vietnam participated in the ATPF this year. In particular, Vice Chairman of China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT) Zhang Shaogang, Deputy Executive Director of Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) Benjamin Chau also took part in this online meeting.
In his speech, Lau Wai Meng said that the epidemic has accelerated the mainstreaming of information technology and digitisation, which none of the APTF members can ignore. Technological developments do not only change how trades and businesses are made to a great extent, but also bring about new opportunities and challenges for trade promotion institutes in terms of innovation and to traditional trade and investment services in terms of reform. He believed that the Forum was an important platform for all different trade promotion entities to exchange information and share their experiences in providing services to small and medium-sized enterprises. He also expressed his hope that the ATPF would continue to deepen collaboration among member trade promotion institutes.
Two meetings were held, one on how trade and investment promotion organisations could be innovative when affected by the pandemic, and the other on how to improve small and medium-sized enterprises’ competitiveness. IPIM’s Executive Director Agostinho Vong Vai Lon introduced IPIM’s services that support businesses, and shared experiences of hosting online activities when the city was hit by the epidemic, and presented some of the achievements of these events.
The Asian Trade Promotion Forum (ATPF) was founded in 1987, as advocated by the Japan External Trade Organisation. It is formed by 22 trade promotion entities representing different Asian economies. The purposes of ATPF are carrying out practical co-operation and exchange projects, strengthening the connection among members, and improving trade activities within the region via effective communication and information sharing. IPIM became an ATPF member in 1999. This is the second time Macao has hosted the Asian Trade Promotion Forum, the first being in 2006.
