Asia 2015: promoting growth, ending poverty; conference report

This is the report for Asia 2015, a very high profile international conference held in London in March 2006. A key aim of the conference was to to develop a shared understanding ofpotential challenges to Asia’s capacity to maintain high rates of growth while continuing to move millions out of extreme poverty. A key theme of the conference was aid, and conclusions were that, while aid is still important for the region, other relationships and partnerships might also be important to address particular challenges.

Some of the key points raised at the conference were:

• Asia presents a 'development success story', reflected in rapid growth and industrialisation within the region over the past decade. However, much of this wealth is unevenly distributed across and within regions
• some regions within countries are benefiting more from economic opportunities than others. Urban areas are expanding, and have become economic powerhouses. Other areas, often remote rural regions, are lagging behind, with few opportunities to connect to, or benefit from growth
• while individual Asian countries are best placed to assess what needs to be done internally, some of the solutions lie outside their borders. This requires developing a common understanding of shared problems with neighbours and with the international community
• there is a need for Asian governments to foster a conducive environment for investment through appropriate macro-economic and trade policies
• as energy use increases rapidly, there is a need to find alternative sources of energy, supplemented by strategies to increase efficiency
• investing in access to water, and in health and education services, backed up by skills training, can equip people to move out of poverty themselves
• increased investment in disaster preparedness is required
• even though HIV rates are generally low, effective prevention programmes are needed now to stop further spread from high risk groups
• there is a need to rethink regional partnerships and cooperation, such as between Asian governments, the private sector and civil society.