Skip to main content

Expert Opinions & Stories

Published Date
Search for Expert Opinion

Credit: UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe Blog

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) indicator framework has been developed with 231 indicators for global monitoring of the 2030 Agenda. However, the applicability of certain indicators to…

Photo credit: Freepik/Jcomp Blog

Despite efforts to mitigate and adapt to climate change, Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 13 on Climate Action has seen an overall regression in progress in Asia and the Pacific. A 2023 ESCAP…

Photo credit: Shutterstock/Tony Duy Blog

The unique challenges posed to the Asia-Pacific region in the face of climate change, poverty and hunger are well known. The region plays a significant role in climate action as both the largest…

Photo credit: UN Photo/ Martine Perret Blog

Over four billion people will take to the polls in 2024 as 76 countries are set to hold elections.    In Asia, this includes populous countries such as Bangladesh, India, Indonesia,…

Photo credit: Shutterstock/Piyaset Blog

Based on the current rate of progress in Asia and the Pacific, the Sustainable Development Goals will only be achieved by 2062 – a sobering reminder of how much work remains.  Women and girls…

Photo credit: iStockphoto/Ncognet0 Blog

Each year, the births of 64 million children under the age of five and deaths of 8.4 million people are invisible to governments in Asia and the Pacific. Most countries in the region are yet to…

Blog

“How many people have died from COVID-19?” - this seemingly straightforward question cannot be answered in many countries due to the absence of a complete and well-functioning civil registration…

iStockphoto / Ijeab Op-ed

As we reach the midpoint of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, it is an opportune moment to reflect on the Asia-Pacific region’s progress and accelerate efforts to achieve our goals.

iStockphoto/Stocknshares Blog

Every year, millions of people in Asia and the Pacific die without their deaths being registered. The under-registration of deaths has serious consequences for individuals, families, communities and…

Photo credit: UN Photo; iStockPhoto/pixelfusion3d; iStockPhoto/trangiap; iStockPhoto/quangpraha Blog

Sustainability, inclusive development, diversity, resilience, to name a few, are terms and phrases often bandied about in the universe of discourse on international development. One that we hear a…

Op-ed

2022 marks the second anniversary of the COVID-19 pandemic, and while an end to the pandemic is in sight, it is far from over and the consequences will be felt for decades to come. At the same time,…

Photo credit: Plan Bangladesh Op-ed

Most countries in the Asia-Pacific region are on track to reach universal birth registration by 2030: an incredible achievement and a significant milestone in realizing human rights and equality…

Photo credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto Blog

The leave-no-one-behind ambition of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development has challenged policymakers and statisticians to understand the complexity of sustainable development and the…

Photo credit: unsplash/Lê Tâ Blog

A well-functioning civil registration and vital statistics (CRVS) system is the cornerstone of good, sustainable governance and is key to social and economic development. Universal civil registration…

Photo credit: shutterstock/Shine Nucha Blog

Big data permeates many aspects of people’s lives, from daily communication and interactions, to shopping and consumption and the medical treatments they receive. Big data is also transforming the…

Photo credit: iStock/BlackJack3D Blog

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development aims to transform the world and is full of transformative commitments. The commitment to “promote transparent and accountable scaling-up of appropriate…

Photo credit: iStock/metamorworks Blog

Understanding human mobility and migration patterns caused by economic distress or a career move, escape from political turmoil or violence, natural disasters, or tourism require access to timely and…

Blog

At the first Ministerial Conference on Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (CRVS) in Asia and the Pacific in 2014, governments committed to ‘Get every one in the picture,’ through strengthening…

Photo credit: iStock/tampatra Op-ed

The COVID-19 crisis poses an unprecedented threat to development in the Asia-Pacific region that could reverse much of the hard-earned progress made in recent years. The good news is we know how to…

UNICEF Op-ed

The Pacific Island Developing State of Vanuatu has emerged as one of the region’s great success stories. Vanuatu has joined the ranks of Samoa and the Maldives as one of only six countries to…