The 16th Meeting of the APSN Council was successfully held from October 22 to 23, 2024, in Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia. Council Members, Advisory Board Members and Corporate Members from Canada; China; Hong Kong, China; Japan; Malaysia; New Zealand; the Philippines; Singapore; Chinese Taipei; Thailand; and Vietnam; and the Secretariat and the Senior Consultant of APSN were in attendance.
Ms. Sonya Read, President of the APSN Council, chaired the meeting and welcomed all participants to the Council Meeting. In her opening remarks, Ms. Read first thanked Malaysia Marine Department (MMD) for hosting the 16th Meeting of the APSN Council, and then thanked the Secretariat for excellent organizing, which was critical for the formation of the Council Meeting agendas. Ms. President Read also expressed her gratitude to the Council Members for attending and contributing to what she was sure would be a productive and interesting discussion. Tuan Haji Dickson bin Dollah, Director General of Marine, Malaysia Marine Department (MMD), delivered welcome remarks at the Opening Session, warmly welcoming all APSN members to Malaysia and emphasizing Malaysia’s strong and continued support to the APSN and its work in the future.
At the meeting, the Council considered and adopted the 2024 Work Report by the Secretary-General. The Council noted with appreciation that the Secretariat has made relentless efforts in engaging with all Council Members to furthering the mandate of the APSN in 2024. The Council recognized that the Secretariat worked jointly with the MMD to prepare for hosting the APSN Forum on Green Shipping Corridors this October, which aimed to enhance the capacity building of the APEC ports and port-related industries and provided a timely and important platform for communication and collaboration among various stakeholders in the Asia-Pacific region.
At the meeting, the Council also considered and adopted the APSN Action Plan for 2025, the APSN Budget for 2025 as well as the Update on the APEC Port Study Center and the APSN Green Port Award System (GPAS). The Council welcomed the economy reports on port developments by Hong Kong, China and Thailand, which provided insights into the latest developments in their respective economies. The Council also discussed the outcome of the 13th Advisory Board Meeting reported by the AB Chair.
The President thanked all participants for attending the Council Meeting. The Council expressed its gratitude to the President and the Secretariat for their hard work in ensuring another successful Council Meeting.
