Ex-Miti sec-gen to lead Apec secretariat
PORT MORESBY (Papua New Guinea): Former international trade and industry ministry secretary-general Tan Sri Dr Rebecca Fatima Sta Maria has been appointed as executive director of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) Secretariat.
The Secretariat said Sta Maria would begin her three-year term on Jan 1, replacing Dr Alan Bollard from New Zealand.
During her tenure, Sta Maria will serve a membership that accounts for half of the global trade and 60 per cent of world gross domestic product, as well as incoming hosts — Chile, Malaysia and New Zealand.
“Apec ministers welcome Dr Sta Maria’s appointment,” said Papua New Guinea Foreign Affairs and Trade Minister Rimbink Pato.
“Her decades of experience and record of academic and professional excellence make her an excellent choice to take on such a challenging position during a period of great change in the region and globally.”
Pato congratulated and thanked Bollard for his service.
Sta Maria joined the Malaysian civil service in 1981, as part of what was then called the Ministry of Trade and Industry (Miti). She went on to serve in various capacities for 35 years, including stints in administrative and human development work.
Her role as Miti secretary-general from 2010 to 2016 has familiarised her with the bilateral, regional and multilateral fora, and she often took the lead in negotiations involving Asean, Apec and the World Trade Organisation on behalf of the Malaysian government. She was colleagues with six trade ministers and oversaw 12 trade pacts.
“Building consensus is what drives the implementation of all successful negotiations, and that principle is at the heart of what Apec does so well. An organisation is as good and as effective as the team,” said Sta Maria.
Her credentials also include an accomplished academic career.
Sta Maria will be the third executive director appointed to a fixed three-year term, and the first woman to hold the position.