The purpose of the Asia-Pacific Business Forum is three-fold:

1. to provide a platform for governments, the business sector and civil society to discuss economic policy issues and their implications for the economies of Asia and the Pacific, and
2. to foster region-wide networking and partnerships between the business community, governments and civil society.
3. to explore ways in which public and private sectors can work together to achieve the objectives of the Millennium Development Goals and the principles of the Global Compact.

The discussions at the Forum are expected to lead to the formulation of an action-oriented agenda with specified roles for governments, business, international organizations and civil society. This agenda is expected to be implemented between the APBF 2005 and the APBF 2006 (scheduled to be held in April 2006 in Indonesia).