No Poverty

L'Indice mondial de pauvreté multidimensionnelle (IPM) produit par le Programme des Nations Unies pour le développement (PNUD) et l'Initiative d'Oxford concernant la pauvreté et le développement humain mesure la pauvreté en tenant compte de diverses privations subies par les personnes au cours de leur vie quotidienne notamment leur mauvaise santé une éducation insuffisante et leur faible niveau de vie. Le rapport examine le niveau et la composition de la pauvreté multidimensionnelle dans 109 pays couvrant 59 milliards de personnes et présente une ventilation par ethnie/race/caste concernant 41 pays disposant d'informations.

This paper presents the results from using the Digital and Sustainable Regional Integration Index version 1 (DigiSRII 1.0) framework of ESCAP (2020b) to uncover digital economy integration trends across the Asia-Pacific region. The results show that Asia and the Pacific has made good progress with regard to conventional digital economy integration especially because of the significant improvements in the digital economy infrastructure and liberalization of trade of information and communications technology (ICT) goods. However capacity-building of the workforce and investment in infrastructure are required to bridge the digitalization gaps among the digitalized economies in the region. Moreover the fairly low regulatory uniformity among regional economies further highlights the importance of regional regulatory harmonization in order to foster regional trade in digitally enabled goods and services. From a sustainable development perspective inclusivity and equity of access to digitalization and required infrastructure remain key challenges. While Internet penetration in the region has been rising female participation in the digital economy has remained relatively low in general and extremely low in lowincome economies. In addition there is room to enhance cybersecurity in most Asia-Pacific economies. Regional digital policies should focus on harmonizing data protection protocols and building a safer network of servers that would promote economic activity and enable sensitive matters to be conducted online. Fostering a more inclusive digital transformation may considerably boost network-effects and accelerate the transition to a competitive and sustainable regional digital economy.

Traditionally sovereign debt problems of developing countries have been discussed mostly at institutions representing the creditors such as the Paris Club and at the International Monetary Fund but they have also been addressed by the United Nations mostly in the context of its international conferences on financing for development. Although the views of the United Nations on debt are not widely known they are highly relevant in the post-COVID-19 context as inflationary pressures could lead to tightened global financial conditions and exacerbate debt vulnerabilities in developing countries. The present paper provides an overview of sovereign debt restructurings from the 1980s a summary of the debt situation of Asia and the Pacific as a case study and a review of the views of United Nations on debt issues. It also offers suggestions to improve the global debt architecture based on such views by highlighting the importance of linking debt sustainability with sustainable development in debt restructuring workouts and through a hub-and-spoke institutional arrangement to disseminate prudential debt management practices and promote transparency.

The present paper contains a discussion on how central banks and financial supervisory authorities can foster green development in Asia and the Pacific. It is based on the argument that while fiscal policy has received much attention central banks and financial supervisory authorities can certainly play a complementary role in accelerating the transition towards low-carbon climate-resilient economies. Indeed these institutions are obliged to act as inaction could compromise their mandate to maintain economic and price stability given that climate change poses an emerging risk to the financial system. The first point made in the paper is that approximately half of the Asia-Pacific central banks either have sustainability-oriented mandates or have begun to integrate climate issues into their policy conduct. The following discussion points out that while the region remains at the early stage of implementing green monetary and financial policies some central banks and financial supervisory authorities are at the forefront in deploying monetary policy tools prudential measures and broader initiatives to support green finance. To further promote green central banking having clear guiding principles effective communication and adequate technical capacity to customize the green approach is critical. Moving forward these institutions should be mindful of possible unintended adverse impacts of sustainable central banking such as interfering with market neutrality supporting green washing and crowding out green private investments.

The Asia-Pacific region has been leading the global economic growth over the past few decades. However rapid economic growth without sufficient inclusiveness is now constraining the region's future economic and broader development prospects. The COVID-19 pandemic has further revealed the vulnerability of the region due to lack of inclusiveness. The Survey 2021 estimated that 89 million people could have been pushed back into extreme poverty in the region due to COVID-19 contributing to an already increasing trend in income inequality in Asia and the Pacific. Going forward concerns over a “K-shaped” economic recovery both within and across countries and the desire to ensure that the post-pandemic recovery is consistent with long-term inclusive development are broadly shared among policy makers and experts as revealed during policy dialogues organized to disseminate the messages of Survey 2021. Additionally international commitment to inclusive development as manifested in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is pushing distributional issues to the forefront of global policy agenda. With a focus on the role of economic policies in promoting inclusive development the Economic and Social Survey of Asia and the Pacific 2022 will analyze the importance of effective government actions and the role of fiscal monetary/financial and structural policies in enhancing inclusiveness keeping in view the considerable impacts of COVID-19 on inclusiveness and inequality.

After a significant contraction in 2020 economic activities in the developing countries in the Asia-Pacific region rebounded in 2021 thanks to robust external demand. The growth momentum moderated somewhat however towards the latter half of 2021 as countries grappled with renewed lockdowns and restrictions in the wake of the Delta variant of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus which causes COVID-19 disease. Nevertheless some encouraging signs did emerge towards the end of 2021 with COVID-19 infections receding and countries attempting to live with the pandemic. Economic recovery is likely to continue into 2022 albeit at a more moderate pace amid impending risks including the possible emergence of new coronavirus variants pandemic-induced supply disruptions moderating exports macroeconomic stability concerns and potential risks arising from moderation in economic growth in China and the ongoing geopolitical conflict. Policymakers should therefore not be overly optimistic. Moreover risks to an inclusive recovery remain as a K-shaped recovery has unfolded and is likely to leave long-lasting scars and set back progress in implementing the 2030 Agenda and achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. To avoid such scars macroeconomic policies need to be fully employed. In this vein the role of fiscal spending amid limited fiscal space and likely fiscal consolidation is analysed in chapter 3 while the role of central banks in supporting inclusive recovery and development beyond their traditional role in stabilizing inflation is the focus of chapter 4.

After two years of the COVID-19 pandemic poverty is increasing inequalities are widening and daily life is becoming a growing struggle across every society – especially for those already on the social and economic margins.

The Economic and Social Survey of Asia and the Pacific is a flagship publication of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP). Published annually since 1947 the Survey has for decades been a valuable companion for policymakers civil society academia and other stakeholders in the Asia-Pacific region providing forward-looking analyses and recommendations on economic conditions and key sustainable development challenges.

The developing economies in Asia and the Pacific rebounded robustly in 2021 after a year of contraction triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic. The recovery remains nascent and uneven; economic growth is projected to be moderate in 2022 amid continuing uncertainty about the pandemic and the likely unwinding of fiscal and monetary support in view of macroeconomic stability concerns.