ASPBAE participated in the 13th Asia Pacific Forum on Sustainable Development (APFSD)

Bringing together UN bodies, member States, international organisations, civil society, youth, and other stakeholders, the 13th Asia Pacific Forum on Sustainable Development (APFSD) was held from 24 to 27 February 2026, in Bangkok, Thailand, under the theme, “Transformative, equitable, innovative and coordinated actions for the 2030 Agenda and its SDGs for a sustainable future for all.”

The Forum reviewed the regional progress and opportunities for achieving the SDGs. The region is not on track to achieve any of the 17 SDGs, with 88% of measurable targets expected to be missed. Progress on social indicators is also faltering, including equal access to education and youth not in employment, education or training, among others.

The Forum also explored urgent themes shaping the region’s present and future, including worsening climate change, rapid digital transformation, the proliferation of artificial intelligence technologies, demographic changes sweeping the region, the rise in conflicts and erosion of multilateralism, and shrinking civic space.

The Forum called for:
👉 Sustained political will, concrete actions, and financial investments to achieve the full 2030 Agenda
👉 Increased capacities of national and local institutions to implement SDG actions and collect data
👉 Climate justice and a holistic approach to the SDGs that are so closely interlinked
👉 Recognition of Indigenous and traditional knowledge and community-generated data
👉 Technologies grounded in local realities and the principles of accessibility, equity, and inclusion
👉 Strengthened intergenerational solidarity and more robust global partnerships
👉 Civil society and youth engagement in the SDG processes

The APFSD Roundtables deepened the understanding of the regional progress on the Goals up for review and invited inputs to the recommendations on the priorities for action. Discussions on Goal 9 (Industry, innovation and infrastructure), for instance, highlighted the promotion of “inclusive industrial employment through strengthened skills development, technical and vocational education and training (TVET), and decent work frameworks.”

In its interventions, ASPBAE emphasised the interlinkages between Goal 4 (Quality education and lifelong learning) with Goals 6 (Clean water and sanitation) and 9:
✅ Integrate education for sustainable development (ESD) into formal and non-formal education systems
✅ Recognize, protect, and promote Indigenous Knowledge in water governance systems
✅ Invest in quality formal and non-formal education, technical and vocational education and training, and skills development for decent work and livelihood, and aligning education with life skills
✅ Transform education to address the growing demands to improve digital and AI literacy skills, and critical thinking skills

The APFSD is the annual, inclusive intergovernmental forum to support follow-up and review of progress on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the #SDGs at the regional level, feeding into the UN High-Level Political Forum (HLPF).

🔍Read the #13thAPFSD Draft Report here: https://www.unescap.org/sites/default/d8files/event-documents/2600049E.pdf