12. The Executive Secretary extended a warm welcome to the delegations and expressed deep gratitude to the Government and people of the Republic of Korea for the wonderful arrangements made for the Conference, and for the warm hospitality extended to all delegations. She also expressed sincere appreciation to the Minister of Planning and Budget for his presence at the Conference. The hard work and dedication of the officials and staff at the Ministry of Planning and Budget, the Korea Development Institute and other institutions in the preparatory process were deeply valued. She said that the assembly of such a distinguished group of participants at the Conference was in itself a PPP, and expressed the hope that the deliberations would foreshadow what was expected of best partnerships - a combination of strengths, styles and perspectives.
13. The Executive Secretary noted that although the Asia-Pacific region was one of the world's most dynamic, it was also home to more than half of the world's extreme poor of more than 630 million. She also observe that in the region we see: poor rural communities cut off by bad roads; farmers who cannot communicate with their markets; decrepit hospitals that are short of the most basic equipment; women walking miles to fetch water; schools with classrooms that may be nothing more than four bare walls and a blackboard. She then raised the question "What would it take to build those roads, those communication systems, those water supplies, those hospitals and those schools."
14. UNESCAP had estimated that over the period to 2010 the region would need to invest US$608 billion annually, while the actual investment in recent years had been in the region of US$388 billion. This meant that the projected overall demand for infrastructure finance would far outstrip supply. Furthermore, larger emerging economies in Asia had greater access to infrastructure finance than other developing countries, particularly the least developed countries, landlocked developing countries, the Pacific island developing countries and the countries with economies in transition. Consequently, there was an urgent need for governments, the private sector, central and multilateral development banks, the United Nations and bilateral development agencies to work more closely together to address the infrastructure financing needs in the region, including the rural and isolated areas as well as the exploding urban cities. In this context, it was noted that PPPs had the potential to combine the strengths of governments which had the responsibility to ensure the provision of public goods with the strengths of the private sector, particularly its ability to deliver high-quality services within the budget and on time.
15. As an intergovernmental body with universal membership in the region, the UNESCAP had a pivotal role to play in efforts that had transnational and cross-regional dimensions. It could help look across the region to track developments and highlight critical areas. For example, the importance of capacity-building was being addressed through the interregional Development Account Project implemented jointly with the United Nations Regional Commissions in Europe and Africa. The High-Level Expert Group Meeting which preceded the Conference recognized the importance of expanding this cross-regional work through regional and global alliances, prompting the UNESCAP secretariat to include this as one of its key priorities over the next 18 months. In addition, a diagnostic tool had been developed by the UNESCAP to help governments analyze the key issues of PPPs and prepare the necessary action plans.
16. The Executive Secretary observed that the region was testament to the fact that a strong PPP could help generate inclusive and sustainable economic growth. In this context, she expressed the hope that everyone concerned would come together to seize new opportunities not only to build on the experience, but also to develop a more integrated economic and social framework that would drive the region forward. For its part, the UNESCAP was ready to play its full part in this endeavour, not just through its efforts within the secretariat, but also as a place for a meeting of minds.
17. In concluding, the Executive Secretary called on the delegations to put forward suggestions on ways in which the UNESCAP could play its full part in facilitating PPPs to advance inclusive and sustainable economic, social and environmental development in Asia and the Pacific.