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s host of the prestigious Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit next year, Indonesia will pursue a vision for cooperation that will lay an emphasis on maintaining the region’s resilience against economic crises.

The call was made amid the looming risk of economic fallout from Vietnam, a member of APEC and the Association of Southeast Asian Nation (ASEAN), following turmoil in its banking system triggered by an excess of bad debts.

Speaking to top executives of multinational companies at the APEC CEO summit on Saturday, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said Indonesia’s concrete action proposals to ease the crisis
fears would include the need for APEC to develop an early warning system to detect potential financial crises, and to prepare the necessary measures.

The proposal will be among Indonesia’s items on the agenda for next year’s APEC summit, planned to be held on the resort island of Bali in October.

 “APEC needs to develop an early warning system and mechanisms, not only to address the contagion effects of economic crises but also to avoid becoming the epicenter of any future crisis. This can be further fostered by stronger consultation and cooperation among Asia-Pacific economies,” said Yudhoyono.

He also warned of persistent faults in the global economic architecture, which had created difficulties for business.

“Thus, APEC should evolve stronger complementarities and synergy with other multilateral forums,” he said.

In another part of his speech, Yudhoyono also suggested APEC economies contribute to regional resilience by strengthening their individual economic performances. “This is a must in order to balance the slow-down in global export markets.”

Yudhoyono also said that next year’s APEC Summit would put more emphasis on a vision for economic cooperation that would be relevant for the business community.

“Next year’s theme for the APEC Summit will be aptly coined ‘Resilient Asia Pacific: The Engine of Global Growth’.”

APEC, set up in 1989 in response to the growing interdependence of Asia-Pacific economies, brings together 21 member economies surrounding the Pacific Ocean — from China, Southeast Asia, Australia to Chile via the US. Its core mission is to reduce tariffs and other trade barriers among members.

The members account for 54 percent of world economic output and 44 percent of global trade.

Fears remain among APEC member economies over a contagious financial crisis in the region as several European Union (EU) countries continue to struggle to stay afloat through bailouts, while economic recovery in the US remains sluggish.

Economic growth in Asia’s economic powerhouses China and India are expected to slow in the near future due to flagging demand from Europe and the US for their products.

These concerns are unlikely to be downplayed by most of the region’s policymakers, who are still gripped by the trauma of the 1997 Asian financial crisis that forced ASEAN members Indonesia, Thailand, and the Philippines to seek bailouts from the IMF. The crisis first emerged in Thailand.

Vietnam risks becoming the biggest East Asian economy to seek an IMF rescue loan since that financial crisis as it moves to support a faltering banking system, Bloomberg reported on Thursday.

According to a report by the economic committee of the Vietnam National Assembly, as quoted by Bloomberg, the country may need IMF aid to recapitalize its banks and must act quickly to clean up bad debt or risk “prolonged stagnation”.

The financial system, the assembly suggested, would need an injection of at least US$12 billion.

Vietnam’s central bank deputy governor Le Minh Hung, however, said that Vietnam had no reason to seek loans from the IMF, given that the country’s macroeconomic situation was stable.