Asia-Pacific ready to lead and shape sustainable trade and development

The recent and striking success of Asia-Pacific countries in boosting growth and reducing poverty is testament to the importance of trade as a driver of growth. Rapid integration of Asia and the Pacific with the global economy through trade, investment and technology transfers has lifted an average of 42 million people in the region out of absolute poverty every year since 1990 (Asia-Pacific Regional MDGs Report 2012/2013 – Asia-Pacific Aspirations: Perspectives for a Post-2015 Development Agenda, ESCAP/ADB/UNDP, 2013).