It is only a few months since the COP26 summit yet states and a myriad of other stakeholders are due to soon meet at the APEC Summit, hosted in Thailand. While several aspects relating to business sustainability may be discussed, the summit is expected to especially focus on carbon credit markets and the carbon tax, among other topical and eco-friendly systems.
An APEC Finance Ministers’ meeting is expected to be held first, and a leaders’ meeting will shortly follow. The Finance Ministers are expected to explore sustainable finance, namely relevant fiscal tools to foster sustainability like the carbon tax, and the digital economy. A final meeting will be held in late June, showcasing concluding remarks.
The APEC Summit is seen as part of Thailand’s project to lead sustainability in the Asia-Pacific region, in a nuanced way. Thai businesses are key leaders in the shift toward eco-friendly and alternative systems: businesses have developed models and capital funding plans for discussion during the summit. The APEC Summit follows the BOI approving measures to support carbon reduction. Three key measures were approved at the 6 September 2021 meeting:
1. Incentives aimed at encouraging companies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions;
2. An updated scheme to support Thailand’s production of electric vehicles; and
3. Measures to mitigate the impacts of COVID-19 and support local vaccine development.