On 21 May 2020, His Excellency General Prayut Chan-o-cha (Ret.), Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Thailand, delivered inaugural remarks at the 76th Session of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) under the theme topic “Promoting economic, social and environmental cooperation on oceans for sustainable development”, which was held via videoconference for the very first time due to the exceptional circumstance of the Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) pandemic. The Session also featured opening remarks by the Prime Ministers of Bangladesh, Fiji and Tuvalu, as well as Vice President of UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), UN Secretary-General, and ESCAP Executive Secretary.

 

The meeting was attended by 51 ESCAP member States, as well as associate members and permanent observers, to share views on promoting cooperation in the conservation and sustainable use of oceans in line with the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), in particular Goal 14, and to review the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in Asia and the Pacific, as well as to strengthen regional and global cooperation in response to COVID-19 with a view to building back better.

 

The Prime Minister underscored the social and economic impacts posed by COVID-19, which is a great challenge that has forced everyone to adapt and embrace the “New Normal”. He commended and extended support to all countries in overcoming this crisis while reiterating the Royal Thai Government’s commitments in effectively responding to the outbreak through various measures, including the “Stay Home, Stop the Disease, for the Nation” campaign, by ensuring sufficient medical supplies, the provision of transparent and accurate information to the public, as well as the promotion of community participation through more than one million village health volunteers nationwide.

 

In Building Back Better, the Prime Minister stressed that everyone has to stand firm in the pursuit of sustainability, by placing importance on restoring the environment and maintaining balances between economic, social, environmental, development activities. The Sufficiency Economy Philosophy is Thailand’s  path to achieving sustainable development and leaving no one behind.

 

In addition, the Prime Minister suggested that the COVID-19 crisis opens up opportunities for  everyone to rethink and find new ways to enhance cooperation in various areas such as food and energy security, public  health, the utilization of digital economy which will help mitigate the economic effects and the disruption of supply chains. In this regard, Bio-Circular-Green Economy is a sustainable model that promotes inclusive growth.

 

On the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the United Nations, the Prime Minister expressed that multilateralism is being tested, and the United Nations as well as the multilateral system needed to evolve to better reflect interests of Member States. ESCAP plays a vital role as a platform for enhancing the exchanges of experiences and good practices, especially during crises such as COVID-19 that do not respect boundaries and require cooperation from every country and stakeholder. ESCAP is also an important mechanism to support countries  in achieving the SDGs in this Decade of Action.  The Prime Minster’s full remarks can be viewed via https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4S3srIUzbkw.

 

The Commission also decided on the theme topic for the next Session in 2021, which is “Building back better from crises through regional cooperation in Asia and the Pacific” to further discuss and exchange experiences and good practices as countries continue to recover from the COVID-19 crisis with a view to building resilience and immunity in the face of future challenges.