The Second Ministerial Conference on Regional Economic Cooperation and Integration in Asia and the Pacific (RECI) commenced in the UNESCAP Secretariat in Bangkok Thursday morning.
The Conference is co-hosted by UNESCAP and Asian Development Bank. The Conference has two segments: Senior Officials' Segment and Ministerial Segment. The Senior Officials' Segment was held on 21 and 22 November 2017. The Ministerial Segment will be held on November 23 and 24.
According to the Embassy of Nepal in Bangkok, ministers and high-level Government officials, as well as representatives from private sector and academia, are participating in the Conference.
The Second Ministerial Conference is expected to discuss ways and means to further promote economic cooperation and integration in Asia and the Pacific, and will also provide an opportunity to discuss how RECI can most effectively support and contribute to the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
A Ministerial Declaration is expected to be issued at the end of the Conference.
Vice Chairman of the National Planning Commission (NPC), Dr. Swarnim Wagle, and the leader of the Nepali delegation, has been elected Chairman of the Conference.
The Nepalese delegation to the Ministerial Conference comprises Dr. Wagle, Mr. Bishnu Prasad Lamsal, Secretary, National Planning Commission Secretariat, and Dr. Khaga Nath Adhikari, Ambassador and Nepal's Permanent Representative to UNESCAP.
Secretary Lamsal led the Nepali delegation to the Senior Officials' Meeting on November 21 and 23.
The First Ministerial Conference on Regional Economic Cooperation and Integration in Asia and the Pacific was held in Bangkok in December 2013. The First Conference called for enhanced efforts for regional economic cooperation and integration in Asia and the Pacific, with focus in four areas: (a) moving towards the formation of an integrated market; (b) the development of seamless connectivity across the region in the areas of transport, energy and information and communications technology; (c) enhancing financial cooperation; and (d) increasing economic and technical cooperation to address shared vulnerabilities and risks.
