Participants to the Second Asia-Pacific Intergovernmental Meeting on HRD for Youth

United Nations ESCAP
HRD Section

Child Rights and Good Governance: Regional Cooperation against Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation

Former Thai Prime Minister's Keynote Address to the Second Asia-Pacific Intergovernmental Meeting on HRD for Youth, 1 June 1998, Bangkok

"The notion of good governance is concerned with a more open and participatory society whereby all those who interact with children should be more transparent, honest and accountable toward children," said Former Prime Minister of Thailand and UNICEF Ambassador for Thailand H.E. Mr Anand Panyarachun in his keynote address to ESCAP's Second Asia-Pacific Inter-Governmental Meeting on Human Resource Development for Youth.

Mr. Anand stressed that good governance is concerned with not only how the government acts, but also the conduct of businesses, and how families treat their children. "Good governance calls for more consultations and cooperation between governments, law enforcement authorities, the business sector and civil society, including NGOs, the mass media, families and child and youth representatives," he remarked.

The tenets of good governance significantly influenced the drafting of the new Thai Constitution which was promulgated in 1997, said Mr. Anand, who played a key role in its formulation.

He cited more than ten challenges to the Asia-Pacific region to promote child rights and good governance. Among them were: improved selection and capacity-building of law enforcers; more penalization of corruption; more people's participation in decision-making, monitoring and implementation; more self-regulation; more child-friendly and gender-sensitive measures; and more social incentives.

"Such challenges are a direct test for all of us in the call for more concrete action on behalf of children. If well implemented, empowered by a collaborative spirit and reinforced by mutual cooperation, the Asia-Pacific region will be able to pride itself on being a humane leader for the new millennium," said Mr. Anand.

Back to overview of both meetings

Asia-Pacific Meeting of Youth Organizations in Preparation for the Third Session of the World Youth Forum, 27-29 May 1998
Report of the Meeting (TEXT-ONLY VERSION)
List of Participants (TEXT-ONLY VERSION)

Second Asia-Pacific Intergovernmental Meeting on HRD
for Youth, 1-5 June 1998
Keynote Speech | Panel Discussion
Report of the Meeting (TEXT-ONLY VERSION)
List of Participants (TEXT-ONLY VERSION)
Asia-Pacific Position (TEXT-ONLY VERSION)
Proposals for Action (TEXT-ONLY VERSION)
Proposal No 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8