President Lee Myung-bak and First Lady Kim Yoon-ok are to visit Hawaii November 11-13. President Lee is scheduled to attend the 19th APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting to be held in Honolulu on November 13.

Since its founding in 1989, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum has continued to work toward regional economic integration. The leaders participating in this year’s meeting are expected to discuss how to work together to boost growth and create jobs in the midst of an economic downturn caused by the global financial crisis, help improve corporate competitiveness through deregulation and enhance energy efficiency and security.

At the Summit, President Lee will emphasize that international collaboration is necessary to address high unemployment amid the sluggish growth of the global economy. He will also highlight that each member nation has to establish a structure for a virtuous circle, taking into consideration growth, employment and welfare all together and that technological innovations, instead of protectionist measures, have to drive growth and employment. 

In the session devoted to deregulation and competitiveness, President Lee is expected to lead the discussion by introducing successful Korean examples in reforming regulations.

On raising energy efficiency, the President will point out the difficulties posed by the technology gap existing between the developing and developed countries and will urge stepped-up cooperation among member countries. He will also delve into the APEC’s long-range goal of realizing a Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific (FTAAP). Beginning next year, the Korean Government plans to initiate programs aimed at strengthening the abilities of the developing countries in the area so that they can join the projected multilateral FTA.