The Asia Business Leaders Advisory Council (ABLAC) comprises a high-level group of Asian and Canadian business leaders convened annually by the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada to identify and articulate opportunities for improved Canada-Asia business engagement.
Council membership is represented across Canada and more than 10 Asia Pacific economies, and annual meetings are held in cities throughout Canada and Asia. Launched in 2016, ABLAC has emerged into a critical forum to catalyze dialogue and action.
ABLAC 2024 was held in Vancouver, Canada under the theme, Business Resilience and Partnerships in an Increasingly Turbulent World, and featured 20 members of the international Council alongside leaders from government, business, and academia from Canada and across Asia.
ABLAC Members and special guests were invited to engage in various panel discussions addressing the risks and opportunities for Canada’s engagement in the region, given the strategic challenges it faces. These sessions helped generate recommendations discussed at the Closing Plenary Session and detailed in a summary report available soon.
Current Members
Canada
Asia
ABLAC Meetings & Reports:
ABLAC 2024 - Vancouver
March 25-26, 2024
Summary and Recommendations Report
The Asia Business Leaders Advisory Council (ABLAC) held its seventh annual meeting on March 25-26, 2024, in Vancouver. With the Government of Canada almost two years into the implementation of its Indo-Pacific Strategy at the time of this meeting, and amid a backdrop of increasing geopolitical uncertainty, targeted and strategic business engagement with the Indo‑Pacific region is more important than ever.
The 2024 meeting offered an opportunity for ABLAC to recommend specific next steps for the further strengthening of Canada-Asia business engagement.
ABLAC 2023 - Singapore
February 20-21, 2023
Summary and Recommendations Report
The Asia Business Leaders Advisory Council (ABLAC) held its sixth annual meeting in Singapore from February 20-21, 2023, just as the city-state ended most of its COVID-19 restrictions. It was the first time in four years, since the 2019 annual meeting held in Hong Kong, that the Council met in person. The meeting was timely as it followed the release of Canada’s long-awaited Indo-Pacific Strategy (IPS) in November 2022, a foreign policy priority advocated by ABLAC Members in previous meetings.
ABLAC 2021 – Virtual*
April 7 & 8, 2021
Broad Diversification: Strengthening Canada-Asia Engagement After COVID-19
The Asia Business Leaders Advisory Council held its fifth annual meeting in a virtual setting on April 7-8, 2021. More than 150 ABLAC members and invited guests convened virtually over the two-day meeting to discuss a number of timely issues related to the overarching meeting theme. The key takeaway echoed throughout the ABLAC 2021 meeting is that engagement with Asia is as important as ever and will be crucial for Canada’s own post-COVID economic recovery.
*Note: ABLAC 2020 was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic; ABLAC 2022 was also postponed due to travel restrictions.
ABLAC 2019 – Hong Kong SAR
February 27, 2019
Preparing Canadians for a Highly Connected Future with Asia
ABLAC 2019 marked the Council’s first meeting outside Canada. The meeting focused on encouraging trade agreements, ensuring an Asian component to Canada's Innovation Superclusters strategies, and increasing Canada’s Asia-competent talent pool through education.
ABLAC 2018 – Toronto, Ontario
March 2, 2018
Our third ABLAC meeting helped define the focus of previous discussions and commence action. Council members discussed topics including: Removing barriers to engagement, accelerating enhanced connectivity, and informing an Asia Strategy for the Government of Canada.
ABLAC 2017 – Vancouver, British Columbia
March 13, 2017
ABLAC 2017 focused on connecting innovation ecosystems, hearing Asian business leaders’ perspectives on Canada, and capitalizing on the current geopolitical situation.
ABLAC 2016 – Vancouver, British Columbia
February 26, 2016
Our first ABLAC meeting focused on building Canada’s brand in Asia, defining Canada’s competitive opportunities, and deepening Canada-Asia commercial networks.
