HONG KONG — The Asia-Pacific Business Forum (APBF) 2018 will be held from 10 to 11 April in Hong-Kong, where senior representatives from across government, business, civil society and academia will gather to identify how business engagement can be strengthened to achieve sustainable development in the region. This year, the annual Forum will focus on how private sector-led innovation, technology and financing can enhance efforts towards achieving the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
Jointly organized by the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) and Cyberport, with support from the Innovation and Technology Bureau of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, and in cooperation with the ESCAP Sustainable Business Network (ESBN), APBF 2018 will feature panel discussions and special sessions with the region’s leading business, finance and development experts.
APBF is the flagship regional business forum organized by ESCAP, with its 53 Member States and nine Associate Members, ranging from least developed countries and small island developing states, to countries with emerging markets, as well as the ESCAP Business Advisory Council and ESBN.
What: Asia-Pacific Business Forum (APBF) 2018
Who: Governments, business, civil society and academics from the Asia-Pacific region
Where: Cyberport, 100 Cyberport Rd, Telegraph Bay, Hong Kong, China
When: 10-11 April 2018
Media Highlights
Tuesday, 10 April
09:00-10:30 Inaugural Session
- Mr. Mahbubur Rahman, President, ICC Bangladesh; Chairman, ETBL Holdings; President, ESCAP Sustainable Business Network Executive Council
- Dr. Hongjoo Hahm, Deputy Executive Secretary, ESCAP
- Mr. Paul CHAN Mo-po, GBM, GBS, MH, JP, Financial Secretary, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China
- Mr. Nicholas yang, Secretary for Innovation and Technology, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China
- Dr. Lee George Lam, Chairman, Hong Kong Cyberport Management Company; Vice-President, ESCAP Sustainable Business Network Executive Council
- Mr. N.R. Narayana Murthy, Founder, Infosys
- Mr. Ben Way, Chief Executive Officer, Macquarie Group Asia
11:00-12:30 Plenary Session 1 – Responsible investment
14:00-15:30 Plenary session 2 – Fintech: Unleashing a sustainable development revolution
15:30-17:00 Plenary session 3 – The Artificial Intelligence Revolution: implications for work & society
Wednesday, 11 April
09:00-10:30 Special Session: Digital Silk Road – Fostering regional cooperation in technology and finance for the Belt and Road Initiative
- Mr. Vincent Lo, Chairman, Hong Kong Trade Development Council
- Dr. Li Shan, CEO, Silk Road Finance Corporations Ltd.
- Dr. Margit Molnar, Chief China Economist, OECD
- Mr. Carson Wen, President and Chairman, Bank of Asia (BVI) Ltd
10:30- 11:30 Economic outlook and key policy challenges in emerging Asia: Presentation on the Economic Outlook for Southeast Asia, China and India 2018 by OECD, Dr. Kensuke Tanaka, Head of Asia Desk, OECD Development Centre
16:00-17:00 Closing session: Way Forward: Technology, innovation and finance for sustainable development
- Dr. Shamshad Akhtar, UN Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of ESCAP
- Dr. Victor K. Fung, Chairman of Fung Group
- Hon. Inia Seruiratu, Fiji’s Minister for Agriculture, Rural & Maritime Development, and National
- Disaster Management and High-Level Champion of Climate Change
- Dr. Lee George Lam, Chairman, Hong Kong Cyberport Management Company; Vice-President, ESCAP Sustainable Business Network Executive Council
Media Accreditation
For journalists outside of China, please provide the following to escap-scas@un.org by 28 March 2018 (First Name; Last Name; Nationality; ID/Passport Number/copy of passport; Email Address; Mobile Number; News Agency, and latest electronic copy of a passport-sized photo). For all other journalists, the deadline is 6 April 2018.
Please visit the APBF website for more information: http://apbf.unescap.org/
For registration: http://apbf.cyberport.hk/
