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The basic mission of PROAP, as UNESCO's principal regional office serving the 43 member states in Asia and the Pacific, is to contribute to sustainable human development in a culture of peace, underpinned by tolerance, democracy, and human rights, through programmes and projects in UNESCO's fields of competence - education, the natural and social sciences, culture, and communication.
In articulating its mission, PROAP recognizes the immense size of the Asia-Pacific region, including 63 percent of the world's population, and its diversity and cultural pluralism, with its great potential and its persistent problems. It is committed to consolidating the dynamism and recent economic growth the region has experienced, but recognizes its ethical mission to complement this growth by addressing the threats to the peace, security, and equitable development of this region; a widening disparity of opportunity, wealth, and empowerment, between and within nations, leading to social injustice, discrimination, and deprivation of human rights; and an alarming degradation in the quality of individual lives, of communities and societies, and of natural environments in many areas of the region.
PROAP will therefore work with the region's Member States, within the framework of UNESCO's medium term strategy, and in close collaboration with UNESCO headquarters, field offices, and national commissions in the region, the United Nations family and other international agencies, and NG0s, to strive towards a future for the region where:
- Lifelong learning without frontiers will be available to all;
- Literacy and education, recognized as effective means to overcome poverty, will be given the highest priority;
- Educational systems will be renovated and diversified;
- The promotion of access, sharing and transfer of knowledge, science, and universal values will be ensured;
- Girls and women will be guaranteed equity in all areas;
- Creativity, communication and the free flow of information will be supported everywhere;
- Multi-disciplinary approaches to the problems of environment, population, health, and conflict resolution will be in place;
- A common respect and care for the environment and the diverse cultural heritages of the region will be universally manifested.
In addition to working with individual member states, PROAP is mandated to be the principal focal point for the region in UNESCO's areas of competence, serving as the forum for articulating/advocating common themes, trends and issues in the region, and as a channel through which information, documentation, and expertise throughout the region can be made available to member states.
PROAP will carry out its mission through a proactive and anticipatory strategy of integrated and coherent programs, requiring multi-disciplinary orientations and greater team collaboration. The strategy will selectively focus on innovative long-term programs that build national capacity and have high impact and potential for sustainable mainstreaming. PROAP will correspondingly and regularly renew and update the capacity and expertise of its own staff, as well as expand its network of resource expertise to meet the demands of changing needs and changing times. It will also regularly conduct consultative and evaluation sessions to assure impact and accountability, and renew its administrative and management procedures to assure efficiency and productivity in its work.
Dated: 23 July 2000
