Niikura of APEC Secretariat: China's environment has improved a lot | SFC Markets and Finance

By Yang Yulai, SFC, 21st Century Business Herald

The first APEC Senior Officials' Meeting and Related Meetings (SOM1) for 2026 are being held from February 1 to 10 in Guangzhou. This marks the first official event of APEC "China Year."

Takayuki Niikura, Program Director at the APEC Secretariat, joined a field trip to Jingxia Village in Guangzhou’s Huangpu District.

He was impressed not only by the area’s beautiful natural scenery, but also by the village’s approach to developing tourism in ways that help increase local residents’ income.

Having first visited China 25 years ago, Niikura noted significant changes in the country’s environment. He also remarked that China’s electric vehicle adoption has advanced far more rapidly than in many other economies.