The Senior Officials Segment of the 60th Session of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) opened on 22 April,2004 in Shanghai. The flag-raising ceremony was held at 8:30 am at the square of the Shanghai International Convention Center(SICC).

Representatives from ESCAP's 62 members and associate members, relevant international organisations and non-governmental organisations took part in the Session. Chinese Assistant Foreign Minister Shen Guofang and ESCAP Executive Secretary Kim Hak-su attended and addressed the opening Session. Mr. Shen delivered a welcoming speech on behalf of the Chinese Government. He said, "At a time of accelerated cooperation in Asia and the Pacific, it is of special significance for the 60th Session of ESCAP to be held in Shanghai, the birthplace of the organisation and a showcase of China's reform and opening-up. This Session will review the development path of ESCAP, reaffirm the common aspirations of Asia-Pacific countries for stronger regional cooperation and present the remarkable achievements in regional cooperation. The Chinese Government warmly welcomes the representatives of all the Asia-Pacific countries, international organisations and the business community and welcomes the return of ESCAP meetings to Shanghai 57 years later."

Mr. Shen also pointed out that in recent years, the Asia-Pacific region has been enjoying peace in its general situation, overall smooth economic development and great improvement of people's living standards, but it still faces many challenges such as terrorism, transnational crimes and HIV-AIDS. There is indeed a long way to go before the millennium development goals can be achieved. Given the necessity for unswerving endeavour to promote regional cooperation for common development, it is timely and appropriate to define this Session's theme as "meeting the challenges in an era of globalisation by strengthening regional development cooperation". The Chinese side stands ready to join hands with other members, actively participate in the deliberation on poverty reduction, managing globalisation, addressing global issues and other items on the agenda, and work for substantive results of the Session so as to lay a solid foundation for a smooth and successful Ministerial Segment. Mr. Shen also wished the session a complete success.

Mr. Kim commented this session as being a grand event of milestone significance. He expressed ESCAP appreciation for the hard work of the Chinese Government and the Shanghai municipality in their preparations for the meetings.

ESCAP is the earliest intergovernmental multilateral organisation with broadest representation, which is dedicated to economic and social development. Its predecessor, the Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East (ECAFE) was founded in Shanghai in 1947. This is the first time for ESCAP to come back to its birthplace for its meetings. The 60th Session is divided into two parts, the Senior Officials Segment and the Ministerial Segment. The Senior officials Segment will discuss specific issues such as poverty reduction, globalisation and social issues, paving the way for the Ministerial Segment to be held from 26 to 28 April 2004. Some side events such as meetings on sustainable development, the least developed countries and statistics as well as a performance given by Chinese artists with various disabilities will also be staged on the sidelines of the Session.