Facing the tough goal of cutting the number of impoverished
people in half by 2015 in order to achieve sustainable development,
senior officials from across the Asia-Pacific region gathered in Shanghai
Thursday.
They are meeting to explore ways of working together to tackle
those challenges.
Kim Hak-su, executive secretary of the United Nations Economic and Social
Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP), pointed out that
although proud of its tremendous accomplishments, the region is
still home to 70 percent of the world's poorest people. Many earn
less than US$1 per day.
"The challenges (to halving the number of people who live in
abject poverty by 2015) are to the marginalized developing
countries," said Kim during a press conference held before the
opening ceremony of the Senior Officials Segment of the UNESCAP
60th Commission Session.
"Their economic growth is not as high (as China's), the
financing they put into development is limited and they are
struggling more with social issues."
Citing lack of water and desertification, Kim also focused on
the need to reach higher economic growth while protecting
nature.
He was echoed by China's Assistant Foreign Minister Shen
Guofang, who said that despite economic development and the
improvement in living conditions, the Asia-Pacific region also
faces a number of challenges such as terrorism, cross-border crime
and HIV/AIDS. It still has a long way to go to realize the UN Millennium Development
Goals.
"The United Nations should pay more attention to the issue of
development while stressing peace and security," said Shen. He
added that China plans to achieve sustainable development of the
economy and society while participating in regional cooperation in
the future.
The UNESCAP 60th Commission Session attracted delegates from all
62 members and associate members, related international
organizations and non-governmental organizations. The session's
theme is, "meeting challenges in an era of globalization by
strengthening regional development cooperation."
The three-day senior officials segment will be followed by a
ministerial-level discussion next Monday through Wednesday. Also
held on the sidelines of the meeting will be forums on sustainable
development, least developed countries, statistics, knowledge
economy development and the Asia-Pacific Business Forum.
There are already a number of regional and sub-regional
cooperation mechanisms across Asia and the Pacific, including the
Asia-Pacific Economic
Cooperation (APEC), the Association of Southeast Asian Nations
(ASEAN) and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.
Describing the meeting as "future-oriented," Kim expressed
confidence that UNESCAP will become an important platform of
cooperation and play a greater role in promoting it in the
Asia-Pacific region.
(China Daily April 23, 2004)