Promoting Confidence in International Business through Building on the Rule of Law

Mr. David Tonkin, chief counsel for legal, procurement and fraud at the Australian Trade and Investment Commission (Austrade), briefed the participants about the economic challenges faced by the Pacific region owing to inefficient and burdensome regulation, ineffective contract enforcement, corruption, limited access to finance, and inadequate access to insurance and risk mitigation products. According to the Australian Government's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, the trade in 2017 between Australia and PNG was worth approximately $6 billion only, compared to Australia's trade with Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) countries, which reached $563.5 billion, and with Oceania and Antarctic countries, which totaled $37.5 billion that same year. He stressed the importance of combating corruption, strengthening the rule of law, and establishing a legal framework that upholds reciprocal enforcement agreements and provides certainty in business transactions, in stimulating the business environment.

Mr. Tonkin added that implementing international arbitration reform will likely increase foreign direct investment (FDI) and address the issues limiting investment by reducing the reliance of foreign investors on domestic courts, decreasing the potential for corruption, supporting the enforcement of foreign court judgments, and mitigating the effect of a small legal market.