Overview
In the past two decades, ASEAN has seen a steady decline of poverty, from 47% in 1990 to 15% in 2015. However, it persists especially in the region’s rural areas . Poverty goes beyond a mere lack of income. It manifests through the inability to afford and access basic needs, such as food, health and education. Poor people face multiple challenges that deprive them of living long and healthy lives, and realising their full potentials. Different forms of deprivations have been experienced by many in the region especially the poor and the vulnerable. Exacerbated by recurring risks and shocks both human-induced or natural disasters, they are prone to sliding back to poverty. Moreover, poverty is also driven and reinforced by gender inequalities and discrimination and thus affects women and girls differently than men and boys.
In achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, the region is on track in achieving the targets on quality education (SDG4) and industry, innovation and infrastructure (SDG9). Good progress is made on achieving zero hunger (SDG2) and good health and well-being (SDG3) . However, much still needs to be done on reducing inequalities (SDG10), climate action (SDG13), and peace, justice and strong institutions (SDG16) .
Considering the multi-dimensional nature of poverty, ASEAN promotes multi-sectoral and integrated approaches to eradicating poverty and realising the ASEAN Community Vision 2025 and Sustainable Development Goals. Action researches, capacity building initiatives and platforms for knowledge and exchanges have been established to facilitate dialogues among multiple stakeholders to eradicate poverty and promote rural development.
Priority Areas of Cooperation
ASEAN underlines complementarities between the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the ASEAN Community Vision 2025 by developing the Complementarities Roadmap 2020-2025 which sets out priority areas of cooperation.
The Roadmap includes the development of evidence-based studies and action researches on approaches to eradicating poverty and delivery of basic services to vulnerable and marginalised groups. It also includes development of policy recommendations, guidelines, as well as capacity building initiatives that enhances capacities of governments, rural people’s organisations, private sector and other stakeholders.
To achieve the SDGs, ASEAN also developed multi-sectoral and multi-stakeholder platforms to provide resources for learning and exchange as well as to encourage cooperation between National Development Planning Agencies, ASEAN Dialogue Partners and ASEAN Development Partners, and international organisations and civil society organisations.
ASEAN continues to widen the policy space and embrace empowerment approach to engage multiple stakeholders in a dialogue to promote inclusive growth and sharing prosperity for all. ASEAN’s cooperation on rural development and poverty eradication establishes the firm link between invigorating and sustaining growth in rural areas alongside the development of peri-urban and urban areas and strengthening human capital in rural sector, which will lead to the reduction of poverty in the region.
Major Sectoral Bodies/Committees
In 1998, the ministers in-charge of rural development and poverty eradication from all ASEAN Member States gathered in Jakarta, Indonesia for the first time to discuss cooperation in the field of poverty eradication and rural development. The ministers emphasised the urgency of promoting the development of progressive, prosperous and self-reliant rural communities to eradicate poverty.
Since then, ASEAN’s regional cooperation on reducing poverty in the region and promoting inclusive development in rural areas has been overseen by the ASEAN Ministers Meeting on Rural Development and Poverty Eradication (AMRDPE).
Comprising ministers in-charge of reducing poverty and developing rural areas in all ASEAN Member States, the AMRDPE provides strategic guidance and policy steer on regional development cooperation to uplift the lives of poor and vulnerable people from poverty, and invigorate inclusive and sustainable growth in rural areas.
The Senior Officials Meeting on Rural Development and Poverty Eradication (SOMRDPE) is a subsidiary body of the AMRDPE comprising senior officials in the respective ministries in-charge of rural development and poverty eradication. The SOMRDPE supports AMRDPE by recommending regional policies, developing and implementing the five-year regional work plan, and managing partnerships. Currently, SOMRDPE is implementing the ASEAN Framework Action Plan on Rural Development and Poverty Eradication 2016-2020. The work plan contains concrete initiatives to further reduce poverty incidence in the region and foster development in rural areas.
SOMRDPE’s work plan focuses on the following priority areas:
- Rural economic growth
- Social protection and safety nets
- Development of infrastructure and human resources in rural and peri-urban areas
- Public-Private-People Partnership (4Ps) for rural development and poverty eradication
- Resilience of the poor and vulnerable groups to economic and environmental risks
- Monitoring and evaluation of the rural development and poverty reduction in the region
Regional mechanisms
SOMRDPE Plus Three is an annual meeting of the SOMRDPE with the Plus Three Countries namely China, Japan and the Republic of Korea. It serves as a regular platform for sharing policies and good practices on promoting rural development and poverty alleviation.
ASEAN Public Private People Partnership Forum on Rural Development and Poverty Eradication is an annual multi-stakeholder forum that brings together government, civil society organisations, the private sector, and other stakeholders, to exchange experiences and best practices on rural development and poverty eradication, following the selected theme of each year.
Apart from these mechanisms, SOMRDPE builds collaboration with ASEAN Dialogue Partners, international organisations and civil society organisations such as China, the EU, UNDP, World Bank, ADB, AsiaDHRRA, FAO, WFP and IFAD.
Key Documents
- ASEAN Gender Mainstreaming Strategic Framework
- ASEAN Committee on Women (ACW) Work Plan 2021-2025
- ASEAN Commission on the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Women and Children (ACWC) Work Plan 2021-2025
- ASEAN Framework Action Plan on Rural Development and Poverty Eradication 2021-2025
- The Senior Officials Meeting on Social Work and Development (SOMSWD) Work Plan 2021-2025 and Its Results Framework
- Declaration on Building A More Sustainable, Inclusive and Resilient Future: Unlocking Women’s Entrepreneurship in ASEAN
- ASEAN Regional Plan of Action on Women Peace and Security
- Regional Guidance on Strengthening the Role of Social Workers and the Wider Social Service Workforce in Social Protection
- Regional Guidance on the Development and Use of Social Service Workforce to Population Ratios in ASEAN
- ASEAN Master Plan on Rural Development 2022 to 2026
- Ministerial Understanding on ASEAN Cooperation in Rural Development and Poverty Eradication (1997)
- Joint Declaration on the Attainment of the Millennium Development Goals in ASEAN (2009)
- ASEAN Action Plan on Social Safety Nets
- ASEAN Cooperation on Social Recovery and Opportunities for Collaboration with Dialogue Partners/International Agencies
- ASEAN Framework Action Plan on Rural Development and Poverty Eradication 2016-2020
- ASEAN Ministerial Statement on Adopting a Community-Driven Development (CDD) Approach to Social Protection
- EAS Leaders’ Statement on Cooperation in Poverty Alleviation
- ASEAN Plus Three Statement on Promoting Sustainable Development Cooperation
- Complementarities Roadmap 2020-2025 (not available online)
- AMRDPE Joint Statements
- Chairman’s Statement of the First Informal Meeting of ASEAN Ministers on Rural Development and Poverty Eradication
- Joint Communique of the 2nd Meeting of the ASEAN Ministers on Rural Development and Poverty Eradication
- Joint Communique 3rd Meeting of The ASEAN Ministers on Rural Development and Poverty Eradication
- Joint Communiqué of the 4th ASEAN Ministers on Rural Development and Poverty Eradication
- Joint Communique of the 5th ASEAN Ministers Meeting on Rural Development and Poverty Eradication
- Joint Statement of the Sixth ASEAN Ministers Meeting on Rural Development and Poverty Eradication (6th AMRDPE) (enclosed)
- Joint Statement of the Seventh ASEAN Ministers Meeting on Rural Development and Poverty Eradication (7th AMRDPE)
- Joint Statement of the Eighth ASEAN Ministers Meeting on Rural Development and Poverty Eradication (8th AMRDPE)
- Joint Statement the Ninth ASEAN Ministers Meeting on Rural Development and Poverty Eradication (9th AMRDPE)
- Joint Statement of the Tenth ASEAN Ministers Meeting on Rural Development and Poverty Eradication (10th AMRDPE)
- Joint Statement of the Eleventh ASEAN Ministers Meeting on Rural Development and Poverty Eradication (11th AMRDPE)
- Joint Statement of the Twelfth ASEAN Ministers Meeting on Rural Development and Poverty Eradication (12th AMRDPE)
- Joint Statement of the Thirteenth ASEAN Ministers Meeting on Rural Development and Poverty Eradication (13th AMRDPE). The 13th AMRDPE
Publications
- ASEAN Framework Action Plan on Rural Development and Poverty Eradication 2021-2025
- Master Plan on Rural Development
- Framework Action Plan on Rural Development and Poverty Eradication 2021-2025
- Poverty and Sustainable Development Asia Impacts and Responses Global Economic Crisis
- ASEAN Countries Meet to Discuss Social Development In the National Development Agenda
- Report of the ASEAN Regional Assessment of MDG Achievement and Post-2015 Development Priorities
- Financing the Sustainable Development Goals in ASEAN: Strengthening integrated national financing frameworks to deliver the 2030 Agenda
- SDG Localization in ASEAN: Experiences in Shaping Policy and Implementation Pathways
- ASEAN-China-UNDP Symposium to push for localisation of sustainable development goals
- Emerging Models of Inclusive Innovation: an ASEAN Perspective
- Complementarities between the ASEAN Community Vision 2025 and the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development: A Framework for Action
