The Asia and Pacific region is the most economically dynamic region in the world. In the last decade, growth in industrial production of developing countries in the region has outstripped the relevant global growth rates. The environmental implications of burgeoning regional economies are more significant in Asia and the Pacific than in any other region. Most developing countries in the region are now afflicted by various environmental problems including land degradation and pollution. These problems have arisen from the process of growth-oriented development that has often exceeded environmental carrying capacity.

The conventional environmental management has primarily focused on improving environmental performance in the area of pollution control and ecosystem management. However, in view of the limited environmental carrying capacity of the region, there is a need to shift the economic growth pattern. The conventional “grow first clean up later” approach is no longer the solution and the Asia-Pacific region has embraced the “Green Growth” or “Environmentally Sustainable Economic Growth” as the way forward at the 5th Ministerial Conference on Environment and Development (MCED 2005), held in Seoul in 2005.

The Seoul Initiative on Green Growth, adopted at MCED 2005 is aimed at addressing major policy issues for Green Growth highlighted in the Ministerial Declaration of MCED 2005. The Seoul Initiative provides a regional cooperation framework for Green Growth, taking into account economic, social and geographical features of the region. It also provides a framework for policy consultations, capacity-building and networking for the promotion of Green Growth at regional level.

The objective of the programme is to enhance the capacity of government officials from the countries in the region to pursue Green Growth and share their related experiences. In addition, it seeks to cultivate human resources who will carry out the implementation plans produced by the Seoul Initiative Policy Consultation Forum.