Challenges to Development Regional Development Challenges Poverty Reduction, Growth, and Sustainability.
Poverty reduction remains the central challenge in the region.
Robust, sustainable economic growth is essential for significant gains in poverty reduction, for addressing the diverse problems of underdevelopment, and more generally for improvements in the quality of life. Achieving the IDGs for the Asia and Pacific region will require major economic and social progress, robust, sustainable economic growth, and the mobilization of huge resources. The countries of the region need to address these challenges of growth and sustainability in a systematic manner. Building and upgrading physical and social infrastructure throughout the region is a primary condition for robust, sustained growth, with large investments required in social services such as education, health, water supply, sanitation, and shelter, especially in the poorer countries. Ensuring the environmental sustainability of growth in the region s resource-based economies is essential for development and poverty reduction.