Baku to host 82nd session of ESCAP in 2026

The 82nd session of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) will be held in Baku in April 2026, UN Under-Secretary-General, Executive Secretary of ESCAP Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana said at the 17th Summit of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) held in Khankendi, Report informs.

Alisjahbana expressed gratitude to Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev for this important initiative and support.

According to her, in a time of growing global challenges, the role of regional cooperation is more important than ever. "In this context, I would like to highlight three main proposals for future discussions. Firstly, it is important to establish and strengthen regional platforms to enhance policy coherence and coordination at the national, subregional and regional levels. For example, the new ECO strategy could be aligned with national climate goals.

"Secondly, given the impact of climate change on countries, there is a need to establish or improve common risk assessment, early warning systems and regional response coordination, especially for floods, droughts and glacial hazards with transboundary impacts.

"Thirdly, there is a need to integrate a vision of a sustainable and climate-resilient future into all areas of cooperation, ensuring greater policy coherence and cross-sectoral synergies," she said.

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