2004 APEC Finance and Development Program (AFDP) Plan
With the strong support of the APEC economies and of international financial institutions, especially the World Bank and other related parties, the past two years have witnessed a successful proceeding of the APEC Finance and Development Program (AFDP). Its activities, including workshops, forums, and research projects were carried out and achieved their desired results. Such achievements have established a solid foundation for smooth sailing of AFDP in the future. Under the framework of AFDP's Three-Year Plan, and based on the experiences of the past two years, AFDP plans the following activities in 2004.
1. Workshops
The AFDP workshops held in 2002 and 2003 achieved intended effects. Participants from various economies voiced great interest in the workshops, and expect that more similar activities will be organized. They expressed a view that a mechanism should be established to provide on-going training workshops. In accordance with AFDP's guidelines and taking into account the comments and suggestions from various parties in APEC, workshops scheduled for AFDP 2004 are as follows:
|
|
Duration |
TIME |
THEME |
VENUE |
|
Workshop Ⅰ |
4 days |
May 2004 |
Strengthening Corporate Governance and Financial Institutions |
Shanghai, China |
|
Workshop Ⅱ |
3 days |
TBD |
Developing Corporate Bond Markets in the APEC Region |
TBD |
|
Workshop Ⅲ |
3 days |
TBD |
SME Financing: Products and Innovations |
Thailand |
Workshop I
General Introduction
This workshop will be conducted to address issues concerning corporate governance in the economic development of APEC economies; to promote efficiency of governmental regulation; to improve the governance of banks, insurance companies and other financial institutions; and to promote sustainable economic growth and social stability.
Specialists from renowned international financial institutions will be invited to discuss the latest trends in corporate governance, as well as their implications to banking and insurance industries. Additional efforts will be made to enhance interaction between the specialists from IASB and the trainees, as well as the exchange of experiences and views among participants from different APEC economies. Following are the major issues to be discussed:
① International trends in the development of financial reports and corporate governance
② Financial institutions' role in improving corporate governance
③ Comparative analysis of corporate governance principles in financial institutions
④ Building effective internal control systems for commercial banks
⑤ Risk management for commercial banks
⑥ Information disclosure and market regulation for financial institutions
⑦ International accounting standards concerning insurance contracts
⑧ Implication of phase-in implementation of international accounting standards on the insurance industry
⑨ Effective regulation and supervision: challenges and experiences
Format
Co-sponsored by ABAC, the workshop will be composed of keynote speeches, case studies and group discussions. Some parts of the course are to be attended by all participants, while other parts are designed for two separate groups---one for the banking sector and the other for insurance institutions.
Speakers
Experts from IASB, IOSCO and other international organizations; government officials from financial regulatory authorities in APEC economies; senior managers from large insurance institutions and financial holding companies.
Target Audience
Government officials from relevant regulatory authorities in APEC region; and senior managers from banks, insurance institutions, financial holding companies, and other financial intermediaries. 60 to 80 participants are expected.
Workshop Ⅱ
General Introduction
Corporate bonds are a major instrument for corporate financing and constitute an essential part of the capital market. They also play an important role in optimizing the corporate capital structure and improving capital market operation. Given this, an accelerated development of bond markets, especially the corporate bondmarket, contributes to the innovation of the securities market, and serves as a prerequisite to a sound capital market system.
The workshop is expected to further promote the development of and cooperation among corporate bond markets in the APEC region through enhanced discussion on ways to increase demand, to enhance credit, and other related issues, and will draw upon the experiences and good practices of APEC economies. The issues to be discussed include:
① The current status of corporate bond market development in APEC
② Supply and issuance of corporate bonds
③ Credit rating system for corporate bonds
④ Establishment of a reliable clearing system
⑤ Establishment of market infrastructure
⑥ Development of an effective transaction system and secondary market
⑦ Correlation between corporate bond and securities markets
⑧ Government's role in developing the corporate bond market
⑨ Policy recommendations with regard to the development of corporate bond markets in APEC economies
Format
This workshop will be composed of keynote speeches, case studies and group discussions.
Speakers
Senior officials from related government departments of APEC economies; economists from international financial institutions; academicians; and experienced experts from the private sector.
Target Audience
Government officials from relevant regulatory authorities in the APEC region; practitioners from stock exchanges, clearing and settlement institutions, credit rating agencies; and senior managers from the private sector. 80 participants are expected.
Workshop Ⅲ
General Introduction
Practices adopted by APEC economies have proven that SMEs contribute significantly to economic growth by providing employment and increasing corporate vitality. However, the difficulty in financing has been a major obstacle preventing SMEs from healthy and steady development. It is anticipated that this workshop will further contribute to capacity building in terms of SME financing in the region, and help enhance cross-border cooperation in the field of financial services for SMEs in APEC economies.
This workshop will approach the issue from a micro perspective, with financial products and innovations of SMEs as the main focus. It aims to set a platform for sharing experiences in promoting financing techniques and their application, including financial products, financial leasing, asset mortgage financing, mutual guarantee, custody, trade-based financing, etc. In addition, the workshop will touch upon reforms and innovations on SME-related financial services and regulations. The following will be the main issues to be discussed:
① Institutional innovation of SME financing: financial environment, service instruments and regulatory measures
② Financial leasing: application, constrains and risk control
③ Financial innovation for high-tech SMEs
④ Mutual guarantee: application, difficulty and effect
⑤ Risk control in the innovation of SME financing
Format
Keynote speeches, case studies and group discussion.
Speakers
Experts from renowned financial institutions; government officials from financial regulatory authorities; and managers from small- and medium-sized financial service providers.
Target Audience
Government officials responsible for SME financing; managers from SMEs; and other interested parties. 60 participants are expected.
2. APEC Finance and Development 2004 Annual Forum
As set by AFDP's Three-Year Plan, AFDP's annual forum is designed to provide opportunities for APEC participants to exchange views and generate proposed solutions to current financial and economic issues in the region and to disseminate research and workshop outcomes of the program. As the current research projects will be due in June 2004, selected researchers will be invited to present their research results.
The theme of AFDP 2004 Annual Forum will be determined based on the AFDP research results and comments received from APEC economies and international financial institutions.
Format
Keynote speeches and discussions.
Speakers
Researchers of selected AFDP funded projects, experts from international organizations such as the World Bank, PECC, ABAC, Basle Committee; senior government officials from regulatory authorities of APEC economies; prestigious scholars from related academic institutions and private sector representatives.
Target audience
Economists from international financial organizations; representatives from regulatory departments (ministries of finance, central banks, security regulatory committees, stock exchanges, etc.); managers from financial institutions; academicians. 150 participants are expected.
3. Research Program
AFDP's first research program focused mainly on cross-border financing and projects are due in August 2004. The research activity is expected to provide references for policy making and to enhance overall capacity for research in this region. According to the schedule, the funded individuals and institutions will submit their final research reports in June 2004. The research findings will be published and shared among all the APEC economies and other interested economies. Selected research findings will be presented at the 2004 Annual Forum.
