USTDA to support port security initiatives in APEC

USTDA to support port security initiatives in APEC    U.S. Trade and Development Agency director Thelma J. Askey assured members of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation in Indonesia last week that her agency would support a training program to help certain regional countries comply with the International Ship and Port Facility Security (ISPS) Code.
   “Increasingly, the private sector is recognizing that increased security is key for business success,” Askey said at the APEC Transportation Ministerial Meeting July 29. “The training that USTDA will support is designed to demonstrate that trade facilitation and security can and do go hand in hand.”
   USTDA-funded training will help these countries create security self-assessments and develop a mitigation plan to overcome security obstacles. APEC countries that qualify for the USTDA assistance include Chile, Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, Peru, the Philippines and Vietnam.
   “Training will be crafted to suit each economy’s specific needs and will be provided in the economies covered by the program,” the agency said in a statement.
   USTDA also said the training program will be consistent with the goals of the Asian Development Bank’s Regional Trade and Financial Security Initiative, which was established by APEC to combat money laundering and terrorism, and improve port security.
      USTDA will fund the training program as part of the $2.5 million that the agency pledged to the bank at the APEC meeting in Bangkok last year.