United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific

The commission was first established by the Economic and Social Council on 28 March 1947 as the United Nations Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East (ECAFE) to assist in post-war economic reconstruction. Its main mandate was to "initiate and participate in measures for facilitating concerted action for the economic reconstruction and development of Asia and the Far East." On 1 August 1974, the commission was renamed to the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) by the Economic and Social Council to reflect both the economic and social aspects of the Commission's work, as well as geographic location of its members. == Member states ==

There are a total of 53 full ESCAP member states and nine associate members, four of the member states are not geographically located in Asia or Oceania. Full member states The following countries are the full member states of the commission: Notes: • Not geographically located in Asia or Oceania • Least Developed Country † Continuation of membership of the former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) ǂ Continuation of membership of the Republic of China (ROC) ^ Continuation of membership of the French Fourth Republic Associate members The following countries and territories are the associate members of the commission: ==Locations ==

Headquarters The commission was originally located in Shanghai, China, from its foundation until 1949, when it moved its headquarters to the United Nations Conference Centre in Bangkok, Thailand. The subregions and their headquarters are as follows: • East and North East Asia (ENEA) subregional headquarters – Incheon, Republic of Korea • North and Central Asia (NCA) subregional headquarters – Almaty, Kazakhstan • South and South West Asia (SSWA) subregional headquarters – New Delhi, India • South East Asia (SEA) / ASEAN subregional headquarters – Jakarta, Indonesia • The Pacific (PACIFIC) subregional headquarters – Suva, Fiji == Executive secretaries ==

The following is a list of the executive secretaries of the commission since its foundation: == Themes and programmes ==

Implementing Sustainable Development Goals The road map of ESCAP on coherent implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals has not prioritized specific SDGs, but rather it has identified priority areas. Third-party consultations have fed into this road map, which also aimed to activate third parties, such as UN funds, specialized agencies, and regional organizations, to provide more support to Member States. The commission furthermore engages with other regional actors to link their agendas to the SDGs. One example is the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Community Vision 2025. However, regional agendas outside the SDG framework are continually evolving, as exemplified by the new ASEAN Recovery Framework and ASEAN’s Vision 2040. ESCAP has also established novel tools to structure its support to its member states and others. Examples include ESCAP’s SDG Rapid Response facility, used for individual and shared support requests, and its SDG Helpdesk, which offers a platform with tools, knowledge products, expertise, good practices, advice, opportunities for peer learning, and regional South-South Cooperation. ESCAP also seeks to create interaction between debtors and creditors with a focus on the small island states in the Pacific. To date, this has been done through a Regional Debt Conference, rather than some more permanent tool. == See also ==