The 60th Session of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) ended in Shanghai Wednesday with unanimous adoption of the Shanghai Declaration and other six resolutions.  

ESCAP Executive Secretary Kim Hak-su said at the closing ceremony of the conference that the 60th session will be a milestone in the development of ESCAP and inject new vitality into ESCAP.

During the seven-day session, over 800 representatives from ESCAP members and associate members, relevant international organizations and business circles made discussions under the topic of "Meeting the Challenges in the Era of Globalization by Strengthening Regional Development Cooperation."

Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing, also chairman of the session, concluded that important consensus has been reached in the session on strengthening regional cooperation and meeting the challenges of globalization.

Li said the Asian countries should made joint efforts in safeguarding regional peace, developing friendly ties with the neighboring countries, promoting regional cooperation and realizing common prosperity.

The Asian countries should also adhere to a multilateral road and try to safeguard the authority of the United Nations and strengthen its role.

The Shanghai Declaration adopted at the session emphasizes ESCAP's role as the most representative body for the Asian and Pacific region and its mandate as the main general economic and social development center within the United Nations system for the region, particularly in the three thematic areas of poverty reduction, globalization and addressing emerging social issues.

In the declaration, members and associate members of ESCAP committed to multilateralism and to addressing global issues through dialogue, consultation and cooperation.

It reiterated the central role in promoting UN reform as well as to strengthen ESCAP's capacity and efficiency in responding effectively to the challenges that occurred.

ESCAP will encourage member countries to put issues like reducing poverty and hunger as the priority on their agenda, with a view to halving the incidence of poverty by 2015 in the region.

ESCAP promised to revitalize the current round of multilateral trade negotiations, the international financial system, the Doha Development Round, and to enable those countries in the region that are not yet members of the World Trade Organization to accede to it, and to support regional and sub regional cooperation in energy and water resources management and environmental protection.

ESCAP will enhance cooperation on capacity building in public health, and coordinate a more effective and comprehensive response to HIV/AIDS and other diseases in the region.

ESCAP will promote human security in the region through greater regional cooperation, especially for vulnerable people.

ESCAP will fully implement the Monterrey Consensus, cooperate with the United Nations regional commissions, promote the South-South cooperation and encourage the establishment of a regional network of research institutions and universities in the ESCAP region by 2006 in order to promote education, technical skills development and technology transfer.

The declaration reaffirms the vital role of ESCAP in fostering economic and social development in the region, supports efforts by the executive secretary to mobilize and make effective use of additional financial and in-kind resources in support of ESCAP activities, and requests the ESCAP to review on a regular basis the progress made in implementing the provisions of the present declaration.

The 60th Session has passed the proposal that the 61st ESCAP Session will be held on April 21-27, 2005, in Bangkok, Thailand, with the topic as "Implementing the Monterey Consensus in the Asia-Pacific Region: Achieving Coherence and Consistency."

(Xinhua News Agency April 29, 2004)