Trade and environment go hand-in-hand

CONCERNS about the impact of global trade and growth on environmental protection and sustainability, and vice versa, are longstanding and not without cause. Yet, the advancement of these 21st century development priorities is not an either or proposition. To the contrary, they can and must go hand-in-hand.

The fight against climate change exemplifies the significant role that greater interconnectivity of people and markets, and trade between them can play in fostering a more prosperous, secure and sustainable world economy that works for all. Fully harnessing these forces is critical as focus shifts from the negotiating table in Paris, where the COP21 climate agreement was just reached, to the complex implementation work needed to curb global warming.

Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and leaders of the other 20 diverse Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) member economies - accounting for three billion people, half of global trade, 60 per cent of total GDP (gross domestic product) and much of the world's greenhouse gas emissions - underscored their firm commitment to the success of this effort last month in Manila. The region's mobilisation to this end comes a year after the China-United States climate change deal clinched alongside the Apec leaders' meeting in Beijing and incoming Apec chair Peru set the stage for a Paris breakthrough in hosting COP20 in Lima.