Output
1) APEC Tech for Good Best Practices Report
As an essential output of the Project, this Best Practices Report aims to summarize the existing excellent practices and provide a reference for the broader stakeholders among member economies.
- Comprehensive Coverage: Documents minimum 15 validated case studies of technology-driven solutions from at least 10 APEC economies, tentatively targeting: Australia, Chile, China, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Peru, Philippines, Singapore, Korea, Thailand, USA, and Vietnam. They were selected to ensure diversity across developed and developing APEC members, represent major tech hubs, and include specific requested economies (Malaysia, Peru, Thailand) to highlight varied technology applications from digital trade to sustainable agriculture.
- Structured Analysis: Organizes best practices into 5 thematic pillars (e.g., digital inclusion, SME innovation, sustainable tech) with a minimum of 30 pages, excluding annexes.
- Scalability Focus: Highlights 8–10 scalable models with implementation roadmaps, targeting rural/underserved communities in at least 5 developing economies, which we are considering Indonesia, Philippines, Vietnam, Thailand, Peru, and Malaysia. These economies were selected for their significant rural and underserved populations, clear digital divides, and emerging policy support for scalable tech solutions in areas like digital agriculture, telemedicine, and fintech.
- Multi-Stakeholder Input: Integrates submissions from 15+ entities (governments, academia, private sector) and undergoes review by 7+ PPSTI member economies.
- Practical Toolkit: as a part of this Report, it contains 3 parts. 1) A “Regulatory Sandbox” Implementation Guide: Step-by-step instructions for policymakers to create a safe testing environment for new technologies in sectors like fintech and telemedicine. 2) A minimum of 6 pieces of actionable recommendations (within 2 pages) for policymakers and SMSEs. 3) A Model Terms of Reference (TOR) for Public-Private Partnerships: A template to help governments structure clear and effective partnerships with the private sector for tech deployment.
2) 3-Day Workshop
Diverse Participation: Engages 30 attendees from 10+ APEC economies, with 40% female representation (exceeding APEC’s 30% target).
-High-Level Involvement: Features 12 speakers (40% women), including 3 policymakers from government, 6 experts, and 3 academic leaders.
-Site Visits: Conducts 2 site visits to tech innovation hubs (e.g., AI parks, green tech incubators), reaching no less than 30 local direct beneficiaries via participation this workshop in person.
-Policy Outputs: Generates 6 pieces of policy recommendations for digital inclusion, endorsed in principle by workshop experts and participants.
-Skills Training: Delivers 2 hands-on capacity building sessions among the workshop participants (e.g., AI ethics, digital literacy frameworks) with 90% participant satisfaction in post-event surveys. The desired participants are mid-career professionals and policymakers from APEC economies, with roles in: 1) Government: Digital economy, industry, or innovation policy divisions. 2) SMEs & Industry Associations: Leaders focused on digital transformation. 3) Academia & Civil Society: Practitioners in tech for development/digital inclusion.
-Workshop Agenda
Day 1: Foundation & Frameworks 09:00 – 09:30 | Opening Ceremony
-Welcome Remarks from Host Economy & Project Overseer
-Overview of Workshop Objectives and the "APEC Tech for Good Best Practices Report"
09:30 – 10:30 | Keynote Address 1: The Digital Inclusion Landscape in APEC
-2-3 high-level expert sets the stage on challenges and opportunities. 10:30 – 11:00 | Informal Networking Coffee Break
11:00 – 12:00 | Keynote Address 2: Building Scalable and Sustainable Tech Models
-2-3 practitioner (e.g., from a successful case study) shares key lessons on scalability.
12:00 – 13:00 | Lunch
13:00 – 14:30 | Expert Panel & Interactive Q&A: Bridging the Digital Divide – The Role of Policy and PPPs
-Featuring 3 experts (policymaker, private sector, academia).
-Structured with a moderated discussion and open Q&A using an online platform for live polls/questions.
14:30 – 16:30 | Capacity Building Session 1: Co-creation Workshop on Draft Recommendations
-Format: Participants break into small, diverse groups, each assigned a specific thematic pillar from the report (e.g., Digital Inclusion, SME Innovation).
Task: Review and provide concrete feedback on the draft policy recommendations from the report. Experts rotate between groups to facilitate and provide insights.
Output: Refined and participant-validated draft recommendations. 16:30 – 17:00 | Day 1 Wrap-up & Key Takeaways
Day 2: Skills, Solutions & Synthesis
09:00 – 10:30 | Parallel Hands-on Skills Training Session on A Practical Guide to AI Ethics and Governance for SMEs.
10:30 – 11:00 | Coffee Break
11:00 – 12:30 | Parallel Hands-on Skills Training Sessions on Using Data Analytics for Sustainable Tech Impact Measurement.
12:30 – 13:30 | Lunch
13:30 – 15:00 | Expert Panel & Deep-Dive: Empowering Women in Tech & Ensuring Gender-Responsive Solutions
Featuring 3 speakers (40% women target), including a female entrepreneur from a case study economy.
15:00 – 16:30 | Synthesis & Action Planning Session
Part 1: Recap of Key Learnings from the workshop and the Best Practices Report.
Part 2: Participant Reflection & Application Discussion: Facilitated session where participants discuss: 1)"What was your most valuable takeaway?"
2) "How do you plan to apply a specific model, framework, or learning in your role/ economy?"
This session directly feeds into the workshop's policy outputs and ensures practical application.
16:30 – 17:00 | Final Review of Endorsed Recommendations & Closing Remarks
Presentation of the finalized 6 draft policy recommendations, endorsed in principle by the workshop experts and participants.
17:00 – 17:30 | Workshop Feedback Survey Distribution
As the final official agenda item, survey forms are distributed and participants are given time to complete them to maximise response rates.
Day 3: Site Visits & Practical Exposure (public and private each) 09:30 – 12:00 | Site Visit 1: AI & Smart City Innovation Related
-Live demonstrations of AI applications for public good.
-Interactive session with stakeholders 12:00 – 13:00 | Lunch
13:30 – 16:00 | Site Visit 2: Green Tech Related
Showcase of sustainable technology solutions (e.g., for agriculture, energy).
Roundtable discussion with stakeholders on scaling challenges.
3) Project Summary Report
Consolidated Insights: Synthesizes workshop findings and best practices into a minimum of 12-page report, excluding annexes.
-Policy Alignment: Maps outcomes to 3 APEC frameworks (Putrajaya Vision 2040, AIDER, Connectivity Blueprint) across 8 actionable priorities.
-Stakeholder Validation: Reviewed by 20+ experts from PPSTI, DESG, and ABAC, with a 90% satisfactory rate.
-The Project Summary Report, along with the Best Practices Report, will be together disseminated as an APEC online publication following PPSTI endorsement.
Outcome
1) To promote awareness and voluntary adoption of "Tech for Good" best practices among policymakers in at least 5 APEC economies, encouraging exploration of 2-3 case studies (e.g., digital literacy frameworks) for potential implementation.
2) To provide a minimum of 50 policymakers and industry leaders across 10 economies with validated strategies from the Best Practices Report, targeting measured by a specific question in the post-workshop survey assessing participants' self-reported knowledge and confidence levels regarding digital skills deployment strategies.
3) To establish a gender-balanced, cross-border task force from 8 economies that produces 2-3 preliminary concept outlines for future ‘Tech for Good’ innovation pilots.
Beneficiaries
This project will benefit a broad range of stakeholders across APEC economies, with a particular focus on developing economies such as Malaysia, Peru, the Philippines, Thailand, and Viet Nam. The key beneficiaries include: 1) Government Policymakers: Officials responsible for digital economy policies, science and technology regulations, and innovation strategies will gain insights into best practices to enhance technology adoption, 2) Industry Leaders and Entrepreneurs: Businesses, particularly SMEs and startups in digital technology sectors, will benefit from voluntary knowledge-sharing sessions and informal networking opportunities to integrate Tech for Good solutions into their operations, 3) Academia and Research Institutions: Universities and think tanks specializing in digital innovation, science and technology, and applied fields will be engaged in discussions, contributing research insights and fostering cross- economy collaboration.
