Economic And Social Survey Of Asia And The Pacific 2008

The Survey 2016 assesses the region’s outlook as it navigates through global uncertainties, providing policy options and strategies to support countries in striving towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. The report analyses a wide range of areas including economic growth, inflation, trade and investment, financial markets, inequality, employment, and environmental concerns. The special theme of Survey 2016 highlights how both economic growth and productivity growth have declined in the aftermath of the 2008 economic and financial crisis in the Asia-Pacific region. In doing so, the report examines underlying trends of productivity growth and argues that the 2030 Agenda for sustainable development provides an entry point to strengthen productivity as investing in the SDGs can foster productivity growth, thereby creating a virtuous cycle between sustainable development, productivity and development.

The Economic and Social Survey of Asia and the Pacific 2009 analyzes how three global crises of 2008 Great Recession in developed countries, food and fuel price volatility and climate change - threaten the development in the Asia-Pacific region. The publication also talks about subregional variations in performance and policy responses. It concludes with converging crises and redirecting policies to achieve inclusive and sustainable development, and summarizes the ways to move forward from crisis resilience to crisis resistance.

The Survey 2016 assesses the region’s outlook as it navigates through global uncertainties, providing policy options and strategies to support countries in striving towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. The report analyses a wide range of areas including economic growth, inflation, trade and investment, financial markets, inequality, employment, and environmental concerns. The special theme of Survey 2016 highlights how both economic growth and productivity growth have declined in the aftermath of the 2008 economic and financial crisis in the Asia-Pacific region. In doing so, the report examines underlying trends of productivity growth and argues that the 2030 Agenda for sustainable development provides an entry point to strengthen productivity as investing in the SDGs can foster productivity growth, thereby creating a virtuous cycle between sustainable development, productivity and development.

The Asia-Pacific region has been leading the global economic growth over the past few decades. However, rapid economic growth without sufficient inclusiveness is now constraining the region's future economic and broader development prospects. The COVID-19 pandemic has further revealed the vulnerability of the region due to lack of inclusiveness. The Survey 2021 estimated that 89 million people could have been pushed back into extreme poverty in the region due to COVID-19, contributing to an already increasing trend in income inequality in Asia and the Pacific. Going forward, concerns over a “K-shaped” economic recovery, both within and across countries, and the desire to ensure that the post-pandemic recovery is consistent with long-term inclusive development are broadly shared among policy makers and experts, as revealed during policy dialogues organized to disseminate the messages of Survey 2021. Additionally, international commitment to inclusive development, as manifested in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, is pushing distributional issues to the forefront of global policy agenda. With a focus on the role of economic policies in promoting inclusive development, the Economic and Social Survey of Asia and the Pacific 2022 will analyze the importance of effective government actions and the role of fiscal, monetary/financial and structural policies in enhancing inclusiveness, keeping in view the considerable impacts of COVID-19 on inclusiveness and inequality.