Ministry of Foreign Affairs and External Trade RGOB
The Hon’ble Prime Minister H.E. (Dr.) Lotay Tshering will address the inaugural session of the 77th session of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) on 26 April 2021. The Commission session will be held virtually from 26 to 29 April 2021 under the theme, “Building back better from crises through regional cooperation in Asia and the Pacific”.
The Commission session will analyze the socio-economic impacts of the pandemic in countries of Asia and the Pacific and deliberate ways to further strengthen regional cooperation and connectivity and to build resilience from a position of strength at a time of significant risks unleashed by different crises.
The session will also review the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in Asia and the Pacific, consider issues vital to the inclusive and sustainable Development of Least Developed Countries (LDC), Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDCS) and Pacific Island Developing States (PIDS), and discuss the proposed programme plan of ESCAP for 2022.
The Foreign Minister Lyonpo (Dr.) Tandi Dorji will also address the Meeting of the Special Body for the leaders from LDC, LLDC and PIDS of Asia and the Pacific, on 28 April 2021. The Foreign Minister will share the lessons learnt as Bhutan prepares to graduate from the LDC category in 2023. The session will discuss regional cooperation in response to the Coronavirus disease and its impacts and focus on strengthening the resilience of LDC, LLDCs and PIDS in the wake of pandemic.
The UN ESCAP was established in 1947 with its headquarters in Bangkok, Thailand. It is the regional development arm of the United Nations for the Asia-Pacific region with 53 Member States and 9 Associate Members with a geographical scope that covers 4.1 billion people or two thirds of the world’s population.
Bhutan has been a member of ESCAP since January 1972.