Asia Pacific nations commit to action plans to end poverty<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Delegates from 40 Asia Pacific countries pledged here on Friday
\nto translate their broad acceptance of the world's anti-poverty
\ngoals into concrete national financing plans that specify how
\nmuch it will cost them to attain the targets by 2015.<\/p>\n
\"We expect to finalize combining the government's action plans
\nand accumulating their funding needs by April next year,\" UN
\nspecial ambassador on Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) for
\nAsia and the Pacific Erna Witoelar told The Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
Erna went on to add that in the next 10 years, governments
\nmust continue to pursue pro-poor growth and development policy
\nand implement MDG-based action plans.<\/p>\n
The pledge was put in the so-called \"Jakarta Declaration\",
\nwhich would be presented at the 60th session of the UN General
\nAssembly this September by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.<\/p>\n
The declaration calls for regional cooperation in the areas of
\ntrade, investment, capacity-building, technology, infrastructure
\ndevelopment and information and communication technologies.<\/p>\n
According to the declaration, donors must provide enhanced and
\nmore predictable financing for aid, while emerging donors of the
\nregion, such as the East Asian \"tigers,\" should strengthen trade,
\ninfrastructure development and investment in poor countries of
\nthe region to fight poverty.<\/p>\n
\"We recognize the urgent need of Asia and the Pacific to
\nundertake collective actions, considering that ... much needs to
\nbe done over the next ten years,\" Indonesian Coordinating
\nMinister for People's Welfare Alwi Shihab read a statement.<\/p>\n
The declaration therefore requests the special assistance of
\nthe United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the UN
\nMillennium Project to support sectoral needs assessments for
\nnational governments to achieve the MDGs.<\/p>\n
It also reaffirms the importance of enhancing cooperation in
\nthe region in fostering greater coherence and improved trade
\namong the countries to accomplish the MDGs.<\/p>\n
\"We recognize the importance of trade as an engine of growth
\nand development, and emphasize the need for further work in the
\nregion to promote an open, rules-based, predictable, non-
\ndiscriminatory multilateral trading system, including through
\nachieving the development objective of the Doha Round,\" it said.<\/p>\n
The commitment represents the culmination of a three-day
\nmeeting in which the challenges of the region's 14 least
\ndeveloped countries (LDCs) have been brought to the forefront.<\/p>\n
The meeting also recognized the health and environmental
\nproblems in this region, and the delegates expressed commitment
\nto mobilize cooperation to address them.<\/p>\n
Warning that the development gains of many countries in the
\nregion were now threatened by the steady rise of oil prices, the
\ndeclaration calls for enhanced development of alternative energy
\nsources, efficient energy use and sustainability of energy
\nsupplies.<\/p>\n
Given the region's particular vulnerability to natural
\ndisasters, the countries also stressed the need for more regional
\ncooperation and the need to speed up establishment of early
\nwarning systems for all natural hazards.<\/p>\n
Also along with more technology transfer to avert the
\ndevelopment of pandemics such as HIV\/AIDS, avian flu and other
\ncommunicable diseases.<\/p>\n
Separately, a non-government organization coalition Global
\nCall to Action against Poverty (GCAP) feared that the formula of
\nfree trade driving economic growth to implement MDG commitments
\nmight instead make countries move away from the goals.<\/p>\n
\"Such a formula is just the same development paradigm in place
\nover the past 30 years that has been the root cause of the
\ncurrent poverty and injustice, choking the lives and human
\ndignity of the world's poor, in which the majority live in the
\nAsia Pacific region,\" it said in a statement.<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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