Forum Economic Ministers meeting in Nuku'alofa, Tonga. 5 July 2013.

Economic cooperation with the emerging Asian economies is important for the economic recovery of Pacific Islands, Forum Economic Ministers agreed at the 17^th Forum Economic Ministers Meeting (FEMM) in Nuku'alofa from 4-5 July.

The annual gathering of Forum Economic Ministers, this year under the theme "Leveraging Opportunities for Sustainable Development", was a stock-taking exercise of the state of the region's economies.

There was a long list of about 121 economic-related issues that the economic Ministers were asked to rate.

Among the nine issues that Economic Ministers agreed to were:

• For a Private Sector engagement to take place at the Leaders and at the Economic Ministers Meetings.
• For Private Sector discussions with the Forum Economic Ministers Meeting to be comprehensive, and set the agenda for a Private Sector Dialogue with Leaders.

The Forum member countries represented at the meeting were: Australia, Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Kiribati, Nauru, New Zealand, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Republic of the Marshall Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu.

New Caledonia participated as Forum Associate Member. FEMM Observer representatives came from the Asian Development Bank, Food and Agriculture Organisation, International Monetary Fund, Oceania Customs Organisation, Pacific Financial Technical Assistance Centre, Pacific Islands Private Sector Organisation, Secretariat of the Pacific Community, South Pacific Tourism Organisation, United Nations Development Programme, University of the South Pacific, the World Bank Group, and the World Health Organisation.

The next FEMM will he held in the Solomon Islands in 2014.