1 August 2001                                                            Press Release No. G/28/2001

KNOWLEDGE-BASED ECONOMY VITAL FOR REGION’S PROGRESS

BANGKOK (United Nations Information Services) -- The top brains in Asia gathered here today at a first ever Workshop on “The Emerging Economic Map of Asia: Regional Production Restructuring, Asian Integration and Sustainable Development” at the United Nations Conference Centre in Bangkok.

In a keynote address to the Workshop, Deputy Prime Minister of Thailand H.E. Mr. Pongpol Adireksarn  urged countries of the region to help turn the 21st Century into a Century for Asia.

In outlining his economic map for Asia, the Thai Deputy Prime Minister said that  Asian nations need to cooperate to raise their relevance and competitiveness in the global production system.  There is also a need to consolidate the existing strength by “bringing all the regional and sub-regional groupings in the region as building blocks towards a multi-tiered layer of  cooperation in Asia.”

“A key challenge for Asia to emerge victorious under the pressure of global competition is to develop a region-wide knowledge-based economy by sharing the expertise in information and communications technology,” Mr. Pongpol said. The development of transport and communications network forms an integral part in strengthening cooperation among Asian countries, he added.

In his welcoming statement,  Mr. Kim Hak-Su,  Executive Secretary of ESCAP,  said that  examining  the nature  and implications of production networks provides a specific and important point of entry for exploring the future transformation of Asia in the global context, and the challenges of sustainable and equitable economic development and regional cooperation.

The Workshop also heard statements by Mr. Koji Tamami, Deputy Governor and Managing Director of Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) and  Dr. Cesar Virata, Chairman, Asian Wise Persons’ Group and former Prime Minister of  the Philippines.

The  Workshop will be led by a group of “Asian Wise Persons”  who will provide their wisdom and experiences to examine key themes and issues relating to the emerging patterns of international production networks in leading industries under ongoing globalization and their implication for regional economic cooperation and development for Asia’s future.

The Workshop is being jointly organized by ESCAP,  JBIC and the Asia Strategy  Forum (ASF) from 1-2 August 2001.
 
 

NOTE TO EDITORS: Please kindly be reminded  that you or your representatives are cordially invited to attend the Press Conference tomorrow Thursday, 2 August  2001 at 12:30 hours in the Theatre, ground floor of the United Nations Conference Centre  follow  by a luncheon.

                                                                             -- UNIS --