On 15 September 2017, the 24^th APEC SME Ministerial Meeting, which was held in Ho Chi Minh City, Socialist Republic of Viet Nam, endorsed the APEC Strategy for Green, Sustainable and Innovative MSMEs, noting that this strategy was initiated by the Kingdom of Thailand and the Republic of Peru.

The strategy is intended to enhance green awareness and the necessary skills of MSMEs. It is also aimed at encouraging the public – private partnership approach as a mean to create an enabling environment where MSMEs can participate in green activities in a cost-effective manner. The strategy will also promote the application of green and innovative technologies in order to improve MSME competitiveness and their access to international markets, as well as strengthen green supply chains for sustainable economic growth in the region.

Five pilot sectors are listed in the strategy namely: (1) biomass and renewable energy; (2) construction and green building; (3) tourism; (4) food industries; and (5) textile. As such, Thailand stands ready to take the lead in promoting the use of green innovation and eco-friendly technology in the food sector, and looks forward to joining hands with other APEC members to initiate projects and activities to promote green, sustainable and innovative MSMEs starting in 2018. The final review and stock-take of this strategy will take place in 2022, the year Thailand will assume the APEC Chairmanship.

Since 2016, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Thailand and the Office of Small and Medium Enterprises (OSMEP) of Thailand together with Peru have been pushing forward the draft APEC Strategy for Green, Sustainable and Innovative MSMEs, and it has eventually become one of Thailand’s key deliverables for APEC 2017. The strategy supports the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals and aligns well with Thailand 4.0 and the 20 – year National Strategy, which aims to improve the country’s competitiveness, while ensuring the achievement of a low-carbon society by 2030. It is expected that the strategy will be endorsed by the APEC Leaders in November 2017.