What’s Ahead @ ESCAP

UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific
www.unescap.org
June 2007
Click on image to enlarge. Latin America & the Caribbean to host annual meeting of Executive Secretaries
Executive Secretary Kim Hak-Su (centre) will travel to UNESCAP’s sister organization in Santiago to take part in the annual meeting of the heads of the UN’s five regional commissions. The gathering will be hosted by the Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), Mr. José Luis Machinea (right). Other Executive Secretaries traveling to Chile are Mr. Marek Belka (left) of the Economic Commission for Europe (ECE), Mr. Abdoulie Janneh (second right) of the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), and Ms. Mervat Tallawy (second left) of the Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA), pictured here in 2006 when the meeting was held in Bangkok.
Meeting promotes networking, collaboration to empower people with disabilities
Representatives of ESCAP member governments and NGOs will gather in Bangkok from 6-8 June to discuss how networking and collaboration can empower people with disabilities in the region. Co-organized by the Asia-Pacific Development Center on Disability and UNESCAP, the meeting comes in advance of a high-level mid-point intergovernmental meeting in September on the Biwako Millennium Framework (BMF), which outlines issues, action plans and strategies towards an inclusive, barrier-free and rights-based society for persons with disabilities. At the meeting participants will review implementation of the BMF, and identify challenges towards the second half of the Asian and Pacific Decade of Disabled Persons (2003-2012). For more information, contact the Disability Programme of UNESCAP's Population and Social Integration Section.
Click on image to enlarge. Workshop targets successful approaches to improving housing for urban poor
High rates of urban growth, inadequate infrastructure and a widening housing deficit have resulted in an increasing number of urban residents living in inadequate housing. Without affordable housing in good locations, or accessible transportation links, millions of urban citizens end up living in slum and squatter settlements. Nepal is one of the four UNESCAP members participating in a regional project to assist local officials to initiate more effective housing programmes for the urban poor. From 31 May-3 June, staff from local governments, NGOs, academic institutes and leaders of community-based organizations in Nepal will meet in Pokara for a workshop where they will learn about concepts and approaches to housing the poor that have been proved successful in other countries of the region, and how to apply these approaches locally. ‘Housing the Urban Poor’ is a project of UNESCAP’s Poverty Reduction Section.
Click on image to enlarge.New socio-economic policy brief examines progress made in reaching MDG trade targets
UNESCAP's latest Socio-Economic Policy Brief, to be published on 5 June, examines the progress made in the Asia-Pacific region in reaching the four Millennium Development Goal (MDG) targets relating to trade. Entitled “Achieving the MDGs in Asia and the Pacific: Where do we stand on trade targets?”, the Brief argues that unless more weight is placed on the MDGs in the current round of multilateral negotiations, real progress cannot be made in achieving these targets under Goal 8, which focuses on building a global cooperative environment for development on the basis of three pillars of cooperation: development assistance, debt sustainability and international trade. The Millennium Development Goals, adopted at the UN Millennium Summit in 2000, are a set of targets to combat poverty, hunger, disease, illiteracy, environmental degradation and discrimination against women by the year 2015.
Click on image to enlarge.Asian Highway: upgrading priority routes, improving road safety
UNESCAP’s Transport and Tourism Division will organize consecutive meetings focusing on the Asian Highway Network. Representatives from 32 Asian Highway member countries, financing institutions, and international & subregional organizations are expected to participate in the Regional Workshop on Upgrading of the Asian Highway Priority Routes (19-21 June) and the Expert Group Meeting on Improving Road Safety on the Asian Highway (21-22 June) at the UN Conference Centre, Bangkok. The Workshop aims to create awareness of investment opportunities in member countries and promote investment in priority projects along the Asian Highway. At the Expert Group Meeting, participants will share experiences on how to improve road safety on the Asian Highway Network. The Intergovernmental Agreement on the Asian Highway Network came into force in July 2005.
Uzbekistan workshop targets broadband and ICT development in Central Asia
A regional workshop aimed at promoting and supporting co-operation among Central Asian countries in broadband and ICT development will be held in Tashkent from 21-22 June. At the meeting, organized by UNESCAP’s Information, Communication and Space Technology Division with funding from the government of Japan, participants are expected to formulate a strategy to enhance regional cooperation on ICT development, among other things. Approximately 80 representatives of Central Asian governments, UN and other international organizations, academia, the private sector and the media are expected to attend.
Special Observances and Meetings
The views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the official views or policies of the United Nations. The information contained herein may be freely reproduced. What’s Ahead @ ESCAP is published monthly by the United Nations Information Services Bangkok. Tel: +(66-2) 288-1861-66 • Fax: +(66-2) 288-1052 • E-mail: unisbkk.unescap@un.org