YOGYAKARTA – As many as 32 young people from 8 countries representing Asean have joined the Asean Youth Expo and APEC Youth Summit Meeting on UGM campus from 1- 4 October. The meeting of Asean and Asia Pacific young people is initiated by Ministry of Youth and Sports and is opened by the Minister, Roy Suryo. Rector of UGM, Prof. Dr. Pratikno, M.Soc.Sc., and Dean of Faculty of Social and Political Sciences of UGM, Dr. Erwan Agus Purwanto, M.Si, also attended the event.
The APEC Youth Summit Meeting is joined by the young from 21 countries, including China, Japan, Australia, U.S., Korea, Mexico and Canada. They produced 7 resolution as reference for country leaders in the implementation of APEC programme in the future. “We made a very practical declaration, feasible to be carried out by governments,” said Chair of the APEC Youth Summit, Alexander Tio, to reporters at University Club UGM, Wednesday (2/10).
According to Tio, the result is expected to be an input for government in formulating common policies. “The decision of the APEC Policy is made by state leaders who are averagely of 50-70 years of age. Their policy gives an effect to the current young generation for the next 20 – 30 years,” he said.
The declaration includes encouraging multilateral tranparency by adopting low and fair trade tariffs, enhancing industry finance from threats of money laundering, and access to electricity for more community from environmentally friendly energy resources. The youth also asked governments to enhance trade cooperation between Asia Pacific and Asean countries by encouraging food security through domestic policy and international collaboration, also policy to encourage sustainable economic growth by drafting a more lenient policy for trade in the region.
In response, Roy Suryo, apreciated the youth for their declaration to be submitted to the APEC meeting in Bali. Roy Suryo promised the declaration would be submitted directly to President SBY. “We would submit the declaration to the government, meaning that we would discuss it as a formulation for APEC meeting in Bali,” he said. Roy Suryo said it can become a reference for policy implementation of ASEAN Community 2015.