# United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific

The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) is one of the five regional commissions under the jurisdiction of the United Nations Economic and Social Council. It was established in order to increase economic activity in Asia and the Far East, as well as to foster economic relations between the region and other areas of the world.
The commission is composed of 53 Member States and nine Associate members, mostly from the Asia and Pacific regions. In addition to countries in Asia and the Pacific, the commission's members includes France, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and the United States.
The region covered by the commission is home to 4.1 billion people, or two-thirds of the world's population, making ESCAP the most comprehensive of the United Nations' five regional commissions.

## History

The commission was first established by the Economic and Social Council on 28 March 1947 as the United Nations Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East (ECAFE) to assist in post-war economic reconstruction. Its main mandate was to "initiate and participate in measures for facilitating concerted action for the economic reconstruction and development of Asia and the Far East."
On 1 August 1974, the commission was renamed to the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) by the Economic and Social Council to reflect both the economic and social aspects of the Commission's work, as well as geographic location of its members.

## Member states

There are a total of 53 full ESCAP member states and nine associate members, four of the member states are not geographically located in Asia or Oceania.

### Full member states

The following countries are the full member states of the commission:
* Afghanistan$^#$ (24 April 1953)
* Armenia (26 July 1994)
* Australia (28 March 1947)
* Azerbaijan (31 July 1992)
* Bangladesh$^#$ (17 April 1973)
* Bhutan (06 January 1972)
* Brunei Darussalam (26 July 1985)
* Cambodia$^#$ (20 August 1954)
* China$^ǂ$ (28 March 1947)
* Democratic People's Republic of Korea (the) (31 July 1992)
* Fiji (03 August 1979)
* France$^{*^}$ (28 March 1947)
* Georgia (25 July 2000)
* India (28 March 1947)
* Indonesia (28 September 1950)
* Iran (the Islamic Republic of) (10 July 1958)
* Japan (24 June 1954)
* Kazakhstan (31 July 1992)
* Kiribati$^#$ (26 July 1991)
* Kyrgyzstan (31 July 1992)
* Lao People's Democratic Republic (the) (16 February 1955)
* Malaysia (17 September 1957)
* Maldives (05 August 1976)
* Marshall Islands (the) (31 July 1992)
* Micronesia (the Federated States of) (31 July 1992)
* Mongolia (21 December 1961)
* Myanmar$^#$ (19 April 1948)
* Nauru (20 July 1971)
* Nepal$^#$ (06 June 1955)
* Netherlands (the Kingdom of the)$^*$ (28 March 1947)
* New Zealand (08 March 1948)
* Pakistan (30 September 1947)
* Palau (18 July 1996)
* Papua New Guinea (27 August 1976)
* Philippines (the) (28 March 1947)
* Republic of Korea (the) (20 October 1954)
* Russian Federation (the)$^†$ (28 March 1947)
* Samoa (05 July 1963)
* Singapore (21 September 1965)
* Solomon Islands$^#$ (03 August 1979)
* Sri Lanka (10 December 1954)
* Tajikistan (31 July 1992)
* Thailand (28 March 1947)
* Timor-Leste$^#$ (18 July 2003)
* Tonga (20 July 1971)
* Türkiye (18 July 1996)
* Turkmenistan (31 July 1992)
* Tuvalu$^#$ (26 July 1985)
* United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (the)$^*$ (28 March 1947)
* United States of America (the)$^*$ (28 March 1947)
* Uzbekistan (31 July 1992)
* Vanuatu (27 July 1984)
* Viet Nam (23 August 1954)
Notes:
$^*$ Not geographically located in Asia or Oceania
$^#$ Least Developed Country
$^†$ Continuation of membership of the former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR)
$^ǂ$ Continuation of membership of the Republic of China (ROC)
$^^$ Continuation of membership of the French Fourth Republic

### Associate members

The following countries and territories are the associate members of the commission:
* American Samoa$^*$ (28 July 1988)
* Cook Islands (the)$^*$ (11 July 1972)
* French Polynesia$^*$ (31 July 1992)
* Guam$^*$ (24 July 1981)
* Hong Kong, China$^{*†}$ (25 November 1947)
* Macao, China$^{*ǂ}$ (26 July 1991)
* New Caledonia$^*$ (31 July 1992)
* Niue$^*$ (03 August 1979)
* Northern Mariana Islands (the)$^*$ (22 July 1986)
Notes:
$^*$ Not a member state of the United Nations
$^†$ Change of name from Hong Kong to Hong Kong, China (01 July 1997)
$^ǂ$ Change of name to Macau, China (20 December 1999) and further changed to Macao, China (04 February 2000)

## Locations
### Headquarters

The commission was originally located in Shanghai, China, from its foundation until 1949, when it moved its headquarters to the United Nations Conference Centre in Bangkok, Thailand.

### Subregional offices

The commission maintains five subregional offices in order to better target and deliver programs, given the large size of the region.
The subregions and their headquarters are as follows:
* East and North East Asia (ENEA) subregional headquarters – Incheon, Republic of Korea
* North and Central Asia (NCA) subregional headquarters – Almaty, Kazakhstan
* South and South West Asia (SSWA) subregional headquarters – New Delhi, India
* South East Asia (SEA) / ASEAN subregional headquarters – Jakarta, Indonesia
* The Pacific (PACIFIC) subregional headquarters – Suva, Fiji

## Executive secretaries

The following is a list of the executive secretaries of the commission since its foundation:
Member states :
| | Secretary | Country | Term |
| 11 | Armida S. Alisjahbana | Indonesia | 2018–present |
| 10 | Shamshad Akhtar | Pakistan | 2014–2018 |
| 9 | Noeleen Heyzer | Singapore | 2007–2014 |
| 8 | Kim Hak-su | Republic of Korea | 2000–2007 |
| 7 | Adrianus Mooy | Indonesia | 1995–2000 |
| 6 | Rafeeuddin Ahmed | Pakistan | 1992–1994 |
| 5 | Shah A M S Kibria | Bangladesh | 1981–1992 |
| 4 | J. B. P. Maramis | Indonesia | 1973–1981 |
| 3 | U Nyun | Myanmar | 1959–1973 |
| 2 | Chakravarthi V. Narasimhan | India | 1956–1959 |
| 1 | Palamadai S. Lokanathan | India | 1947–1956 |

## Publications

The commission releases a variety of publications detailing its work and updates on its mandate, as well as on a wide variety of issues affecting its member states. Some of these publications include:
* Asia-Pacific Countries with Special Needs Development Report
* Asia-Pacific Development Journal
* Asia-Pacific Disaster Report
* Asia-Pacific Trade and Investment Report
* Economic and Social Survey of Asia and the Pacific
* Review of Development in Transport in Asia and the Pacific
* SDG Progress Assessment Reports / Statistical Yearbook for Asia and the Pacific