Asia-Pacific region lurching towards steady erosion of democratic spaces: Report

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has called for urgent action and new directions to boost human development in the Asia-Pacific region, mentioning that the region is lurching towards a steady erosion of democratic spaces, worsening inequalities, and an era of unmet aspirations.

The 2024 Asia-Pacific Human Development Report, released by the UNDP on Monday, paints a qualified picture of long-term progress in the region, but also persistent disparity and widespread disruption, foreseeing a turbulent development landscape.

Titled "Making our Future: New Directions for Human Development in Asia and the Pacific," the report adds, "The region has seen a steady reversal in democratic practices, to a degree last seen in the late 1970s, the report notes, with the pandemic enabling governments to further tighten restrictions on civil liberties."

It also argues that unmet aspirations, heightened human insecurity, and a potentially more turbulent future create an urgent need for change, adding, "To chart a new course, governments would need to be future fit to combat the challenges to come."

"The report underscores that to overcome existing challenges, we must prioritise investments in human development, with an understanding that each nation will tailor its own pathways to do so," said Kanni Wignaraja, UN assistant secretary-general and UNDP's regional director for Asia and the Pacific. 

"By fostering a people-first policy and smart growth strategies that put a high value on natural assets, we can pave the way for a future that is not only more secure and peaceful but also sustainable and prosperous for many millions more," he added.

To bring about that change the report calls for three new directions in human development – to put people at the heart of development, to recalibrate growth strategies to generate more jobs and respect the environment, and to focus relentlessly on the politics of reform and the science of delivery to turn ideas into practice.

It also warns that the region faces three converging "risk clusters" – ranging from existential threats due to climate change and future pandemics, economic headwinds from shifting globalisation patterns and automation, and a flagging pace of reform due to diminishing democratic spaces, rising populism, and polarisation.

While the region will account for two-thirds of global economic growth this year, income and wealth disparities are worsening, particularly in South Asia, where the wealthiest 10% control over half of total income. More than 185 million people continue to live in extreme poverty – earning below $2.15 a day – a number that is expected to climb higher following the economic shocks of the Covid-19 pandemic, says the report.

"A people-centered strategy must start by expanding choice for everyone by, among other things, tackling structural exclusion, upholding human dignity, and building capability," it adds. 

"The call for economic growth should be louder, not quieter, as growth remains essential for human development," said Philip Schellekens, UNDP's chief economist for Asia and the Pacific, and the principal author of the report.