Promotes “shared value creation” as key to meaningful APEC prosperity
Sabin M. Aboitiz , Aboitiz Group President and Chief Executive Officer and ABAC PH
Member, will take on a new role at the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC) following his
appointment as the new Co-Chair for the council’s Regional Economic Integration Working
Group (REIWG) under Thailand’s chairmanship next year.
The REIWG will empower discussions and policy recommendations for the progressive
pathways to the realization of the Free Trade Area of the Asia Pacific (FTAAP), support the
World Trade Organization (WTO), strengthen regional services, trade and investments, and work
on reopening borders for safe and seamless travel.
“I am looking forward to my new role in ABAC next year as we take the chairmanship to
Thailand and tackle the challenges of the region. As Co-Chair of the Regional Economic
Integration Working Group (REIWG), I fully commit to collaborative discussion and action on
strengthening services, trade, and investment among the members of APEC,” Aboitiz said.
Aboitiz joined various business leaders at the APEC CEO Summit 2021 in November 10 to
tackle the themes surrounding the continuing impact of the global health crisis, leveraging digital
disruption, and the future of energy and sustainability.
With the Group’s growing footprint in the Asia-Pacific, Aboitiz was invited to share his unique
perspective on how businesses can become a force for good as the region targets recovery in a
post-pandemic world.
“In order for us to deliver on this, [businesses] must be able to generate profits and prosper, as
our growth is directly linked to the growth of our country’s economy, which then ripples out to
the region,” emphasized Aboitiz during the panel discussion, in which he was joined by Yumiko
Murakami, General Partner of Japan’s MPower Partners, and Arihia Bennett, CEO of New
Zealand-based Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu.
Even before the establishment of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
and the widespread adoption of ESG (environment, social, and governance) practices, the
Aboitiz Group has already been pursuing principles of creating shared value through its products
and services that are vital to the communities who depend on them.
Paying close attention to the needs of these communities enables the company to facilitate
relevant and inclusive programs that create opportunities to uplift lives. “It has always been a
natural instinct of ours to drive change for a better world by advancing business and
communities,” he affirmed.
“If each and every one of us here, representing our own companies and countries, are motivated
by this business philosophy of ‘Doing Well by Doing Good’, then the societal needs of the
community we all share—the APEC Region—will indeed be served and satisfied sustainably,”
he added.
As the world recovers from the economic and societal consequences of the pandemic, Aboitiz
called for closer regional cooperation in order to fast-track economic development and inclusive
growth in the Asia-Pacific.
“Affecting meaningful societal change in our region is a responsibility we all carry. We carry it
not just because it is the right thing to do, but also because it is the smart thing to do. It makes
common sense for us to cooperate and innovate towards sustainability, because that is the only
way we can truly thrive and survive as companies and as countries. Our societies depend heavily
on our ability to drive economic growth and lift people out of the quicksand of poverty,” he
stressed.
The APEC CEO Summit is attended by the world’s top CEOs, business leaders, entrepreneurs,
thought leaders, and government leaders. It is held in the lead-up to the annual APEC Summit
between the heads of state of APEC economies.
