On 26 November 2018, H.E. Mr. Vijavat Isarabhakdi, Advisor to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Thailand, attended the opening ceremony of the Midterm Review of the Asian and Pacific Ministerial Declaration on Population and Development on behalf of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Thailand, at the United Nations Conference Centre, Bangkok. The event was attended by Mrs. Armida Alisjahbana, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), and Ms. Laura Londén, Deputy Executive Director of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), as well as representatives of ESCAP Member States and Associate Members, experts on population and development, officials from UN agencies and civil society organisations.

The Advisor to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Thailand delivered opening remarks on Thailand’s views on the population and development challenges faced by Asia and the Pacific region and the world such as inequality, ageing society and access to health care services. He then presented Thailand’s best practices in addressing such challenges through various policies and measures, especially the country’s Universal Health Coverage scheme, the protection of migrant workers and the “Pracharath” initiative. The Advisor to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Thailand also highlighted the importance of human development and its linkages with the Sufficiency Economy Philosophy and underlined the need to find innovative ways to address the problems by engaging all stakeholders and promoting regional cooperation.

The Midterm Review, organised by ESCAP and UNFPA during 26 – 28 November 2018, provides a platform to assess the progress on the implementation of the Asian and Pacific Ministerial Declaration on Population and Development, adopted in 2013, and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Moreover, it serves to prepare regional inputs for the global review at the 52^nd session of the Commission on Population and Development, to be held in New York in 2019.