Asia-Pacific Scout Region (World Organization of the Scout Movement)
The Asia-Pacific Scout Region is one of the five regions of the World Organization of the Scout Movement, with a World Scout Bureau Regional Support Center based in Makati, Philippines. The Asia-Pacific Region services Scouting in the land area of Asia, from Russia, parts of Central Asia, and the bulk of the Pacific Basin, with the exception of the Federated States of Micronesia, the Marshall Islands and Palau, which are under the Interamerican Region by way of the Aloha Council of the Boy Scouts of America.
The Asia-Pacific Scout Region has witnessed the births and rebirths of national Scout organizations since the region was founded in 1969. Starting with ten founding members, it grew to 33 member countries as of 2024, encompassing 35 million Scouts. Eight of the 15 largest Scout associations in the world are in the Region.
For several years, communism and subsequent government repressed Scouting in Afghanistan, where it has returned last , as well as in Mongolia, which had been the first Soviet satellite state since 1924. On the other hand, the World Scout Committee accepted in 2009 the declaration of Gerakan Pramuka Indonesia of having 17 million members for the census 2008. This has directly affected and changed the membership figure in the region, resulting in an increase of 9 million members, which now stands at a total of 24.7 million in 2009.
Widely separated by uneven resources, cultures, ethnic groups and technological resources, Scouting in the Asia-Pacific Region generally enjoys the respect of the public and by governments, a wide array of volunteers encompassing public and private sectors, and is powered by a small but committed group of professionals in the Scouting service.
The current Regional Chairman is Dale Corvera, serving the terms 2022–2025 while the current Regional Director is Jose Rizal Pangilinan. Both are from the Philippines. Hon. Corvera was elected by fellow Committee members to serve as chair following elections for the APR Regional Scout Committee held 16 Feb 2022. He replaced the outgoing Regional Chairman H. E. Ambassador of Indonesia. His tenure ends in 2025 and the Asia-Pacific Region Scout Committee will re-elect a new chair.
This region is the counterpart of the Asia Pacific Region of the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts.
Members
The 33 National Scout Organizations of the Asia-Pacific Region are the following:| Name | NSO Links |
| Afghanistan National Scout Organization | |
| Scouts Australia | |
| Bangladesh Scouts | |
| Bhutan Scouts | |
| Persekutuan Pengakap Negara Brunei Darussalam | |
| Cambodia Scouts | |
| The General Association of Scouts of China | |
| Fiji Scouts | |
| Scout Association of Hong Kong | |
| Bharat Scouts and Guides | |
| Gerakan Pramuka Indonesia | |
| Scout Association of Japan | |
| Organisation of the Scout Movement of Kazakhstan | |
| Kiribati Scouts Association | |
| Korea Scouts Association | |
| The Scout Association of Macau | |
| Persekutuan Pengakap Malaysia | |
| The Scout Association of Maldives | |
| The Scout Association of Mongolia | |
| Myanmar Scouts | |
| Nepal Scouts | |
| Scouts Aoteoroa | |
| Pakistan Boy Scouts Association | |
| The Scout Association of Papua New Guinea | |
| Boy Scouts of the Philippines | |
| All-Russian Scout Association | |
| Singapore Scouts Association | |
| Solomon Islands Scout Association | |
| Sri Lanka Scout Association | |
| Ittihodi Scouthoi Tojikiston | |
| National Scout Association of Thailand | |
| União Nacional dos Escuteiros de Timor-Leste | |
| Pathfinder Scout Vietnam |
The Asia-Pacific Region contains some countries with no National Scout Organization, each of which are due to political constraints within the countries.
- North Korea
- Laos
- Mainland China
APRinbox is the monthly e-newsletter of World Scout Bureau/Asia Pacific Region circulated to Scouts and adult leaders in the global community of the Scout Movement, edited by the Asia Pacific Regional Office in Manila, Philippines.
The Suncheon Asia-Pacific Scout Centre offers programs in English based on the Scout method of "learning by doing" – a hands-on experiential learning process in the outdoors through young leaders from the National Scout Organizations.
In 2023, it was decided to dissolve the Eurasian Region, on 30 September. Kazakhstan, the Russian Federation and Tajikistan joined the Asia-Pacific Region on 1 October, while Ukraine, Moldova, Belarus, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan joined the European Region.
Scout Committee and subcommittees
The APR Scout Committee shall consist of ten persons from member National Scout Organizations in the Asia-Pacific Region who shall be elected by the conference by secret ballot for a term of six years. The chairman of the committee is the leader of the region, which is elected between the committee members. The current chairperson is Hon. Dale B. Corvera. One of its main functions is to act on behalf of the conference between its meetings and to appoint subcommittees or study committees as may be needed.For the 2022-2024 Triennial Plan, the six sub-committees are the following: Youth Engagement, Governance, Diversity and Inclusion, Social Impact, Communications and External Relations, and Educational Methods, Last from 2015 to 2018, the sub-committees were: Programme, Adult Support, Management, Financial Resources, Scouting Profile and Foundation Management. All the members are nominated from the member NSOs, with the youth representatives, Regional Youth Representatives, who are elected from the Asia-Pacific Regional Youth Forum.
Current Asia-Pacific Region Scout Committee members
| Post | NSO | Name | Term | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Chairman |  Philippines|name= PhilippinesPrevious Asia-Pacific Regional Scout Committee members
|
Indonesia|name= Indonesia