Bangkok--24 Apr--UNISBKK
ESCAP annual session addresses triple threat to the region
As countries in Asia and the Pacific grapple with the triple threat that includes an economic crisis, continued food-fuel insecurity and climate change, there is a greater need for regional cooperation in dealing with the challenges, says a senior UN official.
Noeleen Heyzer, UN Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) — the UN’s regional arm — made the call at the opening today of ESCAP’s annual Commission session in Bangkok.
“While no country in the region has been spared from the impacts of the triple crises, we can turn these threats into opportunities,” said Dr.Heyzer. Financial stimulus packages and policy reforms can be use to bring back balance to the development equation, she noted. “Development needs to be inclusive and environmentally sustainable if our region is to lead recovery from the economic crises and take its place as one of the leaders in the new economic order. ESCAP is here to facilitate that process by building consensus and leveraging regional resources to improve cooperation as countries respond to the triple threat.”
The annual session brings together ministers and senior officials from ESCAP’s 62 member governments to discuss the challenges facing Asia and the Pacific and to propose a coordinated response.
“While financial policy reforms taken since 1997 in our region have helped buffer us from the worst of the economic crisis, much remains to be done,”said Dr. Heyzer. “We need to strengthen ESCAP so that member states are provided with a strong regional platform or architecture to address development challenges and implement innovative solutions through regional cooperation.”
The theme of this year’s meeting is sustainable agriculture and food security in Asia and the Pacific. A ministerial round table on the topic will be held on Monday, 27 April, featuring ministers from Bangladesh, China, Indonesia, Myanmar and Papua New Guinea. David Nabarro, Coordinator of the Task Force on the Global Food Security Crisis under the chairmanship of Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, Ursula Schaefer-Preuss, Vice-President of the Asian Development Bank and Dr. Heyzer of ESCAP will join the discussion.
Delegates will also be discussing the implementation of the Bali Outcome Document which contains a range of recommendations for regional actions and initiatives to address food, energy and financial security in the context of climate change.
A high-level panel on the economic crisis will be held in the morning of Tuesday, 28 April. Speakers will include Kim Jong-hoon, Minister for Trade, Republic of Korea, Executive Secretaries of the UN’s regional Commissions for Africa, Europe as well as Asia and the Pacific, and Martin Khor, Executive Director of the South Centre — an intergovernmental organization of developing countries based in Geneva. A meeting focusing on the impacts of the triple crises on the 14 least developed countries and 12 land-locked developing countries in the region will take place on Friday, 24 April.
For further information, please contact
UN Information Services (UNIS), ESCAP:
Bentley Jenson
Tel: (66) 2 288 1869
Mobile: (66) 84 080 5025
Email: [email protected] and [email protected]
Brian Thomson
Tel: (66) 288-1862
Mobile: (66) 89-927-1986
Email: [email protected]