    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1997, Book II)]
    [November 25, 1997]
    [Pages 1661-1663]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    The Vancouver Framework for Enhanced Public-Private Partnerships in
    Infrastructure Development
    November 25, 1997

        Strengthened partnerships between the public and private sectors are
    needed to put in place and manage the infrastructure required by the
    APEC region to meet its economic, environmental and social goals. To
    this end, we declare the following:

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    Voluntary Principles

        We reaffirm the Voluntary Principles for Facilitating Private Sector
    Participation in Infrastructure developed by Finance Ministers, namely:
           (i)  To establish and maintain a sound macroeconomic environment.
          (ii)  To establish stable and transparent legal frameworks and
                regulatory systems to provide a high level of investor
                protection.
         (iii)  To adopt sectoral policies that promote, where applicable,
                competitive and efficient provision of infrastructure
                services.
          (iv)  To increase the availability of long-term capital required
                for infrastructure investments by accelerating efforts to
                broaden and deepen domestic financial and capital markets.

    Financing and Investment

           (v)  We reaffirm Finance Ministers' call on multilateral
                financial institutions to catalyze and support member
                economies' own efforts in infrastructure development,
                including by promoting sound framework policies through
                technical assistance, facilitating flows of private capital
                while continuing to provide direct financial support for
                infrastructure development, and developing innovative
                financing mechanisms to address the long-term financing
                requirements of infrastructure projects.
          (vi)  We encourage Finance Ministers to continue to implement the
                specific initiatives launched in Cebu to facilitate, in
                collaboration with multilateral financial institutions and
                the private sector, the development of domestic financial
                and capital markets. In this regard, we ask them to continue
                to work with private sector financiers and providers of risk
                coverage and investment ratings to promote the development
                of robust and liquid domestic bond markets, including
                markets for asset-backed securities which, as noted by ABAC,
                will enhance private investment in large-scale
                infrastructure projects.
         (vii)  We welcome the mutual cooperation Protocol signed by
                participating Export Credit Agencies and Export Financing
                Institutions to enhance, on a project-by-project basis, the
                attractiveness of infrastructure investment for private
                sector participants.

    Improving Capacities

        Improving capacities is key to accelerating the development of
    economically viable infrastructure projects that the private sector can
    support. To this end, we affirm the need for action in the following
    areas:
        (viii)  To promote the application of state of the art practices in
                each phase of the infrastructure planning, development,
                management, use and retirement cycle.
          (ix)  To develop domestic capacities so that public officials
                involved in infrastructure development in agencies dealing
                with private investors have appropriate expertise and an
                understanding of commercial approaches to infrastructure
                investment, and by promoting technological cooperation,
                including through private-private and public-private
                partnerships.
           (x)  To promote the application of state of the art practices in
                risk mitigation and management, including by promoting the
                most effective use of private and public sector capacities.
          (xi)  To promote transparent, predictable and accountable
                procedures, including for bidding and selection processes,
                and to encourage the use of international competitive
                tendering.
         (xii)  To ensure that infrastructure supports the achievement of
                economic, environmental and social goals by incorporating
                sustainable and equitable development principles in the
                design and operation of infrastructure facilities.

    Information and Consultation

        We recognize the importance of information in supporting the
    participation of the private sector, especially small and medium-sized
    enterprises, in infrastructure projects and commit to engaging the broad
    public in building on the outcomes achieved in key sectors such as
    information infrastructure, intelligent and integrated transportation
    systems, economically and environmentally sustainable energy
    infrastructure, sustainable cities, and infrastructure to support rural
    integration and diversification.
        To these ends, we call on Ministers:
        (xiii)  To improve the availability of information to support
                participation in infrastructure investment by the widest
                possible range

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                of companies, including by small and medium-sized
                enterprises, both on a solicited and unsolicited basis.
         (xiv)  To foster effective consultations to ensure that planned
                infrastructure meets our communities' needs.
        We direct the relevant Ministers to take the necessary measures to
    make good these declarations of intent with the express purpose of
    substantially and measurably increasing the participation of the private
    sector in infrastructure development in the APEC region and promoting
    infrastructure development in support of overall economic growth and
    development goals.