STATEMENT ON BEHALF OF THE ASSOCIATION OF SOUTHEAST ASIAN NATIONS BY MS FELICIA CHIA, DELEGATE OF THE PERMANENT MISSION OF SINGAPORE TO THE UNITED NATIONS, ON AGENDA ITEM 139: SEISMIC MITIGATION RETROFIT AND LIFE-CYCLE REPLACEMENTS PROJECT AT THE ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMISSION FOR ASIA AND THE PACIFIC PREMISES IN BANGKOK, AT THE MAIN PART OF THE 79TH SESSION OF THE FIFTH COMMITTEE OF THE UNITED NATIONS GENERAL ASSEMBLY, NEW YORK, 23 OCTOBER 2024

Thank you, Mdm Chair.

1 I am honoured to speak on behalf of the Member States of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) on Agenda Item 139: Proposed Programme Budget for 2025 in relation to the seismic mitigation retrofit and life-cycle replacements project at the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) premises in Bangkok. ASEAN aligns itself with the statement made by Uganda on behalf of the Group of 77 and China. 

2 ASEAN thanks the Secretariat and the ACABQ for introducing their respective reports. 

Mdm Chair, 

3 ESCAP plays a unique role as the largest United Nations (UN) Regional Commission. It serves 53 members and nine associate members of the Asian and Pacific region and covers 60 percent of the world’s population. ASEAN supports ESCAP’s important work in promoting regional cooperation and providing technical assistance to aid member states in achieving inclusive and sustainable development. We are grateful to the host country, Thailand, for its continued support of ESCAP and commend the stewardship of Executive Secretary Professor Armida Alisjahbana. To ensure that ESCAP continues to deliver on its mandates, we need to guarantee the safety and accessibility of its premises.

4 ASEAN continues to support ESCAP’s efforts in good governance, effective oversight, transparency and accountability to ensure timely completion of the SMP project within budget. We are pleased to note that ESCAP is actively following up on the recommendations from the eighth audit report of the Office of Internal Oversight Services and there are no outstanding recommendations from previous audits. We further recognise the huge improvement in the confidence level that the project will deliver within its approved revised maximum cost, from five percent last year to 44 percent this year, the highest confidence level ever evaluated since 2018. 

Mdm Chair,

5 ASEAN appreciates ESCAP’s innovative strategies that would promote cost savings and environmental sustainability. Through new flexible workspace solutions, ESCAP met the target of 20 percent space efficiency gain. Through various design features of the building, ESCAP is projected to reduce its energy consumption by 27 percent, exceeding its original 16 to 18 percent target and generating savings of more than $75,000 annually. These efforts should continue to be supported, including the sharing of best practices with other construction projects.

6 ASEAN also welcomes and encourages ESCAP to strengthen its commitment to use local knowledge and past lessons as leverage to improve SMP work processes. This includes retaining the professional services of a licensed hazardous materials expert and her team from Mahidol University in Thailand and the Asian Institute of Technology as the project seismic designer. We commend ESCAP for incorporating lessons learned from phase 1 construction and other capital projects to inform and expedite phase 2 construction works. ASEAN is pleased that these valuable lessons will be documented and shared with the Global Asset Management Policy Service for future reference.

Mdm Chair,

7 While acknowledging that ESCAP experienced delays in construction works which are due to unforeseen circumstances, it is also important to recognize ESCAP’s commitment to minimize such delay and ensure the project is within budget. In this regard, ASEAN commends ESCAP’s commitment to a scheduled completion date of 31 December 2024 without additional resource asks. For our part, ASEAN will strongly support ESCAP’s efforts in delivering the project at this last mile. ASEAN also supports the transition strategy established in January 2024 to facilitate the smooth transition to the long-term management of ESCAP premises.

8 To conclude, ASEAN also reaffirms our unwavering support for other construction projects of the UN Regional Commissions. These include the UN Office at Nairobi (UNON), Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) in Addis Ababa, and the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) in Santiago. ASEAN stands ready to engage constructively to reach positive outcomes for these important agenda items. Thank you. 

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