Speaker
Rebecca Fatima STA MARIA
- Affliation
- Executive Director of APEC Secretariat
Biography
Rebecca Fatima STA MARIA is the executive director of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Secretariat based in Singapore where she advises and provides support for APEC’s 21 diverse member economies. Dr. STA MARIA spent years as a top-level civil servant and trade negotiator in Malaysia. As Secretary-General of the Ministry of International Trade and Industry, she oversaw the formulation of Malaysia’s positions in major agreements such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership. And, as a representative to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Dr. STA MARIA chaired the body that drafted ASEAN’s economic community blueprints for 2015 and 2025. In 2024, she was featured in Forbes’ third annual 50 Over 50: Asia list, which showcases 50 inspirational women over the age of 50 from across the Asia-Pacific region.
World Leaders Messages
Rebecca Fatima STA MARIA / Executive Director of APEC Secretariat
For decades APEC has hosted talks that set the stage for one of the most impressive stories of economic success, where hundreds of millions were raised out of poverty economies grew, and trade and investment among APEC members flourished. APEC's diversity is a great strength. It is an example of multilateralism and economic partnerships among governments with different, even contrasting, political and ideological shades. 
