Messages for the 

Ministerial Conference

Message from the Executive Secretary, ESCAP

Message from the President, ADB

Message from the Executive Director, UNEP

Message from the Governor, Fukuoka Prefecture

Message from the Mayor, City of Kitakyushu

Message from the Executive Secretary of ESCAP

The Ministerial Conference on Environment and Development in Asia and the Pacific, to be held at Kitakyushu, Japan, from 31 August to 5 September 2000, will be a landmark in current efforts to promote sustainable development in the region. Although the Ministers concerned will be meeting for the fourth time, this session will carry the additional cachet of being the first high-level regional environmental gathering of the new millenium. The Conference will therefore provide the countries of Asia and the Pacific with a unique opportunity to share experiences related to environmental issues, and to initiate the formulation of urgently required strategies for dealing with the enormous environmental challenges that will almost certainly arise during the course of this century.

The Conference is made even more significant by the fact that we are approaching the tenth anniversary of the Rio Summit on Environment and Development, which was held in 1992. It is anticipated that the participants in the Conference will develop a Regional Message for Rio + 10 that will evaluate the gains made since the 1992 Rio Summit while also producing insights and strategies for the future.

The environmentally and economically diverse Asia-Pacific region covers slightly less than a quarter of the world’s land area, yet it contains more than half of the total world population. During the past century, most countries of Asia and the Pacific have undergone social, political and economic transformations that are unparalleled in history. Today, continuing rapid changes, both in terms of population growth and national economies, are placing even greater pressure on the environment and natural resources of the region. This pressure is, in many areas, being exacerbated by poverty.

Several critical environmental issues have emerged in the light of these transformations. The urban environment is under serious threat from the deteriorating quality of air and water, and is overburdened by solid wastes. Some 35 per cent of the productive land in Asia has already been affected by desertification through deforestation, poor irrigation and drainage practices, and inadequate soil conservation. Most of the developing countries within the region are experiencing steadily worsening water shortages, growing deterioration of the quality of water resources and, as a consequence, sectoral conflicts over water allocation. The rich biological resources of the region have been exploited to an unprecedented degree in the past half-century, in order to meet the demands of international trade and to sustain the growing population of the region. In some sectors, for example, the marine fisheries industry, such exploitation has depleted resources to the point where sustainable development and management are seriously threatened. These are but a few of the environmental issues facing the region.

We are at a stage in the development of the region where the need for rapid action on issues related to the environment and its protection has become critical. The forthcoming Conference will thus provide a forum for policy-makers to address these issues and establish a strong platform of action aimed at securing a better environment for present and future generations. I strongly urge all members and associate members of ESCAP to actively contribute to the deliberations in Kitakyushu as well as avail themselves of the opportunities arising from the Conference to widen cooperation in the fields of environment and development.

Finally, I would like to extend my deep gratitude to the Government of Japan, Fukuoka Prefecture and the City of Kitakyushu for hosting this very important event.

Kim Hak-Su

Executive Secretary

United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific ___________________________________

Mr. Kim Hak-Su 

Executive Secretary, ESCAP

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is pleased to co-sponsor the Ministerial Conference on Environment and Development in Asia and the Pacific (MCED) with ESCAP, UNEP, other organizations, and the Government of Japan.

Sound environmental management is critical to sustainable development, and as a consequence, to poverty reduction. Economic growth will be short-lived if it does not include protection of environmental quality and conservation of natural resources. Although much of the past damage has been caused by the lack of understanding and ineffective enforcement of environmental management, the pressures of poverty and population can also compound the problem through deforestation, overgrazing, and overfishing. The rural poor often live in and further degrade fragile lands and near fragile waters that require sensitive resource management in the face of increasing degradation. The urban poor who contribute to overcrowding and urban pollution, suffer from the resulting diseases and illness of the degraded urban environment. It is therefore important to empower the poor and to give them a stake in managing the environment and natural resources.

The adoption of poverty reduction as ADB’s overarching objective brings challenges and opportunities for ADB to sharpen the focus of its assistance in sustainable management of environmental resources and to improve the plight of Asia’s rural and urban poor. In response, ADB has recently embarked on a reformulation of its environment program.

ADB’s assistance, through an integrated package of capacity building, investment support and policy advice, will increasingly address the critical issue of sustainable resource management. It will promote the conservation of the ecological base of rural livelihoods, including biodiversity resources; protection of coastal and marine resources; and prevention of desertification and land degradation. Such environmental strategies will entail special emphasis on the rights and responsibilities of indigenous peoples and traditional users and in turn, may require support for tenurial rights and traditions, and for moving resources management from government control to co-management by the government and the people who depend on the resources.

Achieving the twin objectives of poverty reduction and environmental protection, which will lead to sustainable development, is not an easy task. Extensive work on a massive scale through various stakeholders will have to be undertaken. Both objectives should be integrated into national development strategies, sector development policies, and regional and local development master plans.

The holding of the Ministerial Conference is, therefore, a timely opportunity to discuss the regional state of the environment and the challenges of sustainable development in Asia and the Pacific. The discussion on a new paradigm of sustainable development for Asia and the Pacific into the 21st century during the Conference will serve as a substantive input to the Rio+10 to be held in 2002. I hope that the policy-makers in the region will also discuss the critical issue of the environment and social policy integration, which will enable the region to reduce poverty through environmental improvement and management.

Tadao Chino

President

Asian Development Bank

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Mr.Tadao Chino

President,

ADB

The United Nations Environment Programme is pleased to be working in partnership with the United Nations Economic and Social Commission, the Asian Development Bank and others in preparing for this conference. We particularly thank the Government of Japan, the Fukuoka Prefecture and the City of Kitakyushu for their generous support in hosting the event.

In his recent Millennium Report United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan defined the major challenges facing the world in the twenty-first century.

He called on heads of State to spread the benefits of globalization to all people and outlined the challenges facing the world under the headings of freedom from want, freedom from fear, and freedom of future generations from the destruction of the environment. The Secretary-General warned that hardly anyone has taken on board the severity of the environmental situation. He called for a new ethic of environmental stewardship; one which involves more scientific research, a massive increase in public awareness, and the integration of environmental costs into the economy through 'green accounting.'

Every two years the United Nations Environment Programme collates and publishes its Global Environmental Outlook; an authoritative assessment of the state of the environment, utilizing the expertise of over 850 people in 100 countries. The GEO-2000 report, published last September, revealed that full scale emergencies now exist in a number of areas: the world water cycle seems unlikely to be able to cope with the demands that will be made on it in the coming decades; land degradation has reduced fertility and agricultural potential; tropical forest destruction has gone too far to prevent irreversible damage; many of the planet’s species have already been lost or condemned to extinction; many marine fisheries have been grossly over-exploited; more than half the coral reefs are threatened by human activities; urban air pollution problems are reaching crisis dimensions in many megacities of the developing world; and it is probably too late to prevent global warming as a result of increased greenhouse gas emissions.

The report also found the Asia and Pacific region faces particularly serious challenges. High population densities are putting enormous stress on the environment. Continued rapid economic growth and industrialization are likely to cause further environmental damage, with the region becoming more degraded, less forested, more polluted and less ecologically diverse in the future. Water supply is a serious problem, with a third of Asians without access to safe drinking water. Energy demand is rising faster than in any other part of the world and Asia’s style of urbanization – towards megacities – is likely to compound environmental and social stresses. In the Pacific there are problems of diminishing resources and threats from climate-change induced sea level rise.

Some of these issues are local in nature, but others cross national and regional boundaries and cooperative action at appropriate levels – particularly sub-regional - will be needed to address them.

On one side we have all the evidence of looming environmental crises. On the other hand, there are grounds for optimism. We have the knowledge and the technology to solve many of the environmental ills facing our planet. What we need now is more political will. And I believe it is coming. People – especially the young – are increasingly aware of and vocal about environmental issues. In recent months we have seen a strong message of concern expressed by the NGO community about our environmental future. There are signs too that this awareness and commitment is spreading to industries and governments. Environmental policy is being integrated into mainstream planning instead of being merely an afterthought.

The Asia Pacific region is, in many ways, a microcosm of the world. Success stories in sustainable development created here can provide valuable models for other regions. It is my hope that the fourth Ministerial Conference on Environment and Development in Asia and the Pacific serves to inform and inspire the other critical environmental meetings on the calendar during these first few years of the new millennium.

With ESCAP, and our colleagues from other agencies within and outside the UN system, we stand ready to assist in the implementation of the regional action programme you will adopt at this conference. I wish you all a very successful conference and Iook forward to working with you on its outcomes.

Klaus Toepfer

Executive Director

United Nations Environment Programme

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Dr. Klaus Toepfer

Executive Director,

UNEP

Message from the Governor, Fukuoka Prefecture Government

It is a great honour for Fukuoka Prefecture to host the Ministerial Conference on Environment and Development in Asia and the Pacific (MCED 2000) in Kitakyushu City.

Due to its close proximity to the Asian continent Fukuoka has, since ancient times, served as a base for exchange and interaction with Asia. Against this background of historical interaction, Fukuoka Prefecture is working together with many Asian countries in such fields as cultural interaction and scientific and environmental cooperation.

With the aim of creating a"Socio-Economic System with Environmentally Sound Cycles", Kitakyushu City and Omuta City are involved in the Ecotown Project, researching and developing new recycling technologies. Through the Fukuoka Prefecture version of Agenda 21 (the Environmental Conservation Action Plan of Fukuoka Prefecture established 1997), the prefectural government, private citizens and businesses are working together to positively promote local and international environmentalism. Combating global warming is a high priority. For example Fukuoka Prefecture Government is monitoring levels of acid rain.

I believe that MCED 2000 is a great opportunity to increase recognition of environmental issues within Fukuoka and I hope that it will serve to further advance efforts towards environmental conservation.

I also believe that holding MCED 2000 in Kitakyushu City, which has overcome its own legacy of industrial pollution, is significant. This will aid the achievement of the conference's goals.

Fukuoka Prefecture Government is working together with ESCAP, the Government of Japan and the City of Kitakyushu toward the success of MCED 2000 and other associated events.

I hope that all the participants in the meeting can take some time to get to know something of Fukuoka, its unique culture and the friendliness of its people. There are also many environment related industries in Kitakyushu City so I hope the participants can visit at least some of them during their stay.

I eagerly await your arrival in Fukuoka Prefecture.

Mr. Wataru Aso

Governor

Fukuoka Prefecture Government, Japan

______________________________________

Mr. Wataru Aso

Governor,

Fukuoka Prefecture Government, Japan

Message from the Mayor, City of Kitakyushu

Kitakyushu, a major metropolitan area with a population of one million, is located midway between Shanghai and Tokyo. Developed as one of Japan’s leading industrialized zones following World War II, Kitakyushu’s extensive industrial structure gave rise to severe pollution problems. However, over a period of 20 years, Kitakyushu succeeded in surmounting this obstacle through the combined efforts of the government, industry, academia and citizens.

Utilizing the experiences and technology gained during this period, Kitakyushu is now enthusiastically working to promote international cooperation in the environmental field by dispatching experts overseas, carrying out international training courses, and coordinating international environmental conferences. Additionally, the city is actively involved in fostering the growth of "eco-business", an industry expected flourish in the 21st century. With its reputation as an "eco-friendly" city, Kitakyushu’s efforts in overcoming pollution and promoting international environmental cooperation have won international recognition, including the UN’s Global 500 Award, presented in 1990 by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the UN’s Local Government Honours, awarded in 1992 at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) in Brazil.

The realization of a resource circulating society is an integral part of environmental conservation. From the position that waste can be a valuable resource, the city is moving ahead with the "Kitakyushu Eco-Town Project", an ambitious program focusing on practical research and the industrialization of waste management and recycling. Recognized by the national government in 1997, the Eco-Town Project strives towards the goal of "zero emissions" – reducing waste products from daily life and industrial activities and effectively utilizing them as materials in different industries. Activities currently in operation in the Eco-Town project include office equipment, automobile, and home appliance recycling factories and practical research on environmental technology for waste ash and biodegradable plastic.

At the start of this 21st century, the "eco-century", the City of Kitakyushu is pleased to be the site of the "4th Ministerial Conference on Environment and Development in Asia and the Pacific (MCED 2000)", which, this year, is being held concurrently with the "Environment Congress for Asia and the Pacific (ECO ASIA)". This comprehensive regional environmental forum will open the door to deeper discussions on environmental issues, strengthen ties and cooperation activities within the region to combat environmental problems, and promote environmental policies. These two highly acclaimed conferences are expected to raise the curtain on a new era of environmental restoration and creation in the Asia-Pacific region.

On behalf of the citizens of the City of Kitakyushu, I would like to extend a personal invitation to you to join us as the "eco-century" unfolds and create a stronger and more prosperous era of environmental conservation in our region. We look forward to a most successful conference this August and September and to welcoming you to Kitakyushu.

Mr. Koichi Sueyoshi

Mayor

City of Kitakyushu, Japan

Mr. Koichi Sueyoshi

Mayor,