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Press
Release..............................
UNESCAP News Services
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Date 26
April 2004
Press Release No: L/15/2004
THE SECRETARY-GENERAL
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MESSAGE TO MEETING OF THE
"VISIONARY PANEL FOR ASIA AND THE PACIFIC 2020"
Shanghai, 26 April 2004
Delivered by Mr. Kim Hak-su, Executive Secretary,
United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the
Pacific
It gives me great pleasure to send my greetings
to the distinguished former Heads of Government and other eminent
leaders who have gathered to discuss the future of Asia and
the Pacific. As we look ahead to the year 2020, there is reason
for optimism. The region is growing fast, and is becoming a
global economic leader. Those gains have raised standards of
living for many millions of people, and brought them new freedoms
and opportunities. Such advances also put the region in a better
position to address the poverty that still afflicts too many
of its people, and to cope with the AIDS pandemic.
But progress can be disconcertingly fragile, as we saw during
the financial crisis several years ago. So optimism is only
as good as the foundations on which it rests. I urge you to
pay particular attention to one of those pillars: the environment.
A healthy environment forms the basis for development, while
an unhealthy environment can trap people in poverty, cause diseases
that are otherwise easy to prevent, and even plant the seeds
of conflict.
The urban environment is perhaps the most important aspect of
this challenge. By 2020, more than half the region's population
will live in cities, often in slums. Already, eight of the world's
ten most polluted cities are in Asia. An estimated 670 million
people in the region lack access to safe drinking water, and
a staggering 1.9 billion lack adequate sanitation. Thousands
die each day as a result.
Climate change also has the potential to bring great devastation,
in a region that is already the world's most disaster-prone.
By 2020, climate change could well generate floods, droughts
and cyclones with greater frequency and force. The region's
small island developing states are especially vulnerable, not
just to lost tourism but to their very viability and existence.
Still, there are many reasons why there is still
time to put our societies and economies on more sustainable
footing.
First, we are better informed. Although some in
the region still deny that the environment is a serious issue,
their voices are becoming weaker as science teaches us more
and civil society groups spread the word.
Second, we have a specific plan for action: the Millennium Development
Goals and the outcomes of the World Summit on Sustainable Development.
Never before have we had such a widely agreed strategy and set
of targets.
Third, we have a wealth of green technologies to begin to do
the job - and a wealth of businesses that are just waiting for
the right signals and incentives from markets and Governments
that they take the transition seriously.
Much is expected of your region as we move ahead. With a population
greater than the rest of the world combined, and which is expected
to grow by at least 700 million in the next 20 years, your countries
will help make or break our success in meeting these goals.
The year 2020 is not a long way off. It is time to usher in
a new era of global responsibility. To make this happen, we
need to listen to what we already know, act on what we have
already agreed, use all the tools and technologies at our disposal,
and address emerging threats before it is too late. I look forward
to working with you to make Asia and the Pacific a better home
for all its people, and a region that contributes to the peace
and prosperity of the entire planet.
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