About Us

United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP)

The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) is the regional development arm of the United Nations for the Asia-Pacific region. With a membership of 62 Governments, 58 of which are in the region, and a geographical scope that stretches from Turkey in the west to the Pacific island nation of Kiribati in the east, and from the Russian Federation in the north to New Zealand in the south, ESCAP is the most comprehensive of the United Nations five regional commissions. It is also the largest United Nations body serving the Asia-Pacific region.

Established in 1947 with its headquarters in Bangkok, Thailand, ESCAP seeks to overcome some of the region’s greatest challenges. It carries out work in three main thematic areas:

• Poverty reduction;
• Managing globalization;
• Tackling emerging social issues.

ESCAP focuses on issues that are most effectively addressed through regional cooperation, including:

• Issues that all or a group of countries in the region face, for which it is necessary to learn from each other;
  
  
• Issues that benefit from regional or multi-country involvement;
  
  
• Issues that are transboundary in nature, or that would benefit from collaborative inter-country approaches;
  
  
• Issues that are of a sensitive or emerging nature and require further advocacy and negotiation.
  
  

UNDP is the UN's global development network, an organization advocating for change and connecting countries to knowledge, experience and resources to help people build a better life. UNDP is on the ground in 166 countries, working with them on their own solutions to global and national development challenges. As they develop local capacity, they draw on the people of UNDP and its wide range of partners.

World leaders have pledged to achieve the Millennium Development Goals, including the overarching goal of cutting poverty in half by 2015. UNDP's network links and coordinates global and national efforts to reach these Goals. Its focus is helping countries build and share solutions to the challenges of:

• Democratic governance
• Poverty reduction
• Crisis prevention and recovery
• Energy and environment
• HIV/AIDS

UNDP helps developing countries attract and use aid effectively. In all its activities, it encourages the protection of human rights and the empowerment of women.

In each country office, the UNDP Resident Representative normally also serves as the Resident Coordinator of development activities for the United Nations system as a whole. Through such coordination, UNDP seeks to ensure the most effective use of UN and international aid resources.

Asian Development Bank (ADB)

The Asian Development Bank (ADB), established in 1966, has currently 63 members of which 45 are in Asia and the Pacific. ADB's vision is an Asia and Pacific free of poverty with better living conditions and quality of life for all its inhabitants. In 1999 the Asian Development Bank adopted poverty reduction as its overarching goal and announced its Poverty Reduction Strategy (PRS) to achieve this end. A review of the PRS was conducted in 2004. It led to the Enhanced Poverty Reduction Strategy (EPRS) with pro-poor, sustainable economic growth; inclusive social development; and governance for effective policies and institutions as strategic pillars, and environmental sustainability, gender and development, private sector development, regional cooperation and integration, and capacity development as thematic priorities.

The impact of ADB's contribution to poverty reduction is measured by progress that the Asia and Pacific region makes towards the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and other strategic development objectives as indicated in the partner countries' national poverty reduction strategies. MDGs and the wider pro-poor agenda specify time-bound poverty reduction results, requiring country-based approaches for their achievements. Complementary infrastructure for effective provision of basic services, productive private sector led employment, and good governance are important preconditions for achieving the MDGs.

ADB is committed to contribute to MDG outcomes in partner countries. To monitor progress, raise awareness, help improve policies and institutions, and develop capacities for achieving the MDGs in Asia and the Pacific, ADB engaged in a regional MDG partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP).

View ADB's work on MDGs.