Below are the 12 post-2015 development agenda (relevant to Asia and the Pacific) proposed in a new joint study by ESCAP, ADB and UNDP:
1. Zero income poverty – The region should build on its recent achievements in poverty reduction and set an ambitious goal of ‘zero poverty’.
2. Zero hunger and malnutrition – The aim should be universal food security, through among other things, much more attention to agriculture.
3. Gender equality – Gender will need to be assessed comprehensively, with more indicators on empowerment and on violence against women.
4. Decent jobs for everyone of working age – This would require full and productive employment and government commitment as an ‘employer of last resort’ translated into an explicit recognition of employment goals and targets in all policies and programmes.
5. Health for all – Priority should go to maternal, newborn and child health, universal access to sexual and reproductive health, including family planning, and to reducing the prevalence of communicable diseases and controlling the spread of non-communicable diseases.
6. Improved living conditions for all – Everyone should have access to safe and sustainable drinking water and sanitation, as well as basic energy services.
7. Quality education for all – This should start with early childhood care and education, followed by higher quality education at all levels, including adult literacy and lifelong learning, and providing learning and life skills for young people and adults.
8. Liveable cities – The poorest city dwellers should have effective shelter and secure tenure along with essential social infrastructure. They should also have access to affordable, safe and energy-efficient mass transport.
9. Environmental responsibility and management of natural resources – This will mean protecting critical ecosystems while reducing resource intensity and avoiding overexploitation of natural capital. At the same time countries will need to address climate change.
10. Disaster risk reduction – The region has witnessed natural disasters that have wiped out long-term development efforts. Any new development agenda should help mainstream disaster risk reduction in national budgets and development programmes.
11. Accountable and responsive governments – There is a call for more accountable, transparent and effective government at both national and local levels for more capable and efficient management of public resources and service delivery.
12. Strong development partnerships and reformed global governance – Countries in Asia and the Pacific will benefit from global and regional partnerships to manage global public goods, particularly in finance, health, trade, technology transfer, environment, and climate change. The reform of global governance should reflect the Asia-Pacific ascendance in the global economy. The prospect and scope of financial and economic crises and commodity price volatility must be minimized in order to protect development gains.
