Functional Cooperation

A major event in the past year was the adoption of the ASEAN Vision 2020 during the Second Informal Summit in Kuala Lumpur in December 1997, which articulated the vision of a "technologically competitive ASEAN, competent in strategic and enabling technologies, with an adequate pool of technologically qualified and trained manpower, and strong networks of scientific and technological institutions and centres of excellence".

With the long-term goals set out in that document by the ASEAN leaders, the Committee on Science and Technology (COST) made an early move to examine how the present plan of action for science and technology can be substantially enhanced to bring about the seamless integration of projects and activities according to the strategies and actions outlined in the Medium Term Programme for Science and Technology (S&T) Development (1996-2000) with those expected to be specified in the Hanoi Plan of Action for the ASEAN Vision 2020.

Two COST meetings were held during this period, the 34th and 35th. At these meetings, COST analysed the issues critical to the implementation of the medium-term programme, made preparations for the Eighth Meeting of the ASEAN Ministers for Science and Technology and the Fifth ASEAN Science and Technology Week to be held in Hanoi in October 1998, and reviewed the status of cooperation projects. Two working group meetings, one with Russia and the other with India, were also convened. A brainstorming session was organised in January 1998 to study the issues critical to strengthen ASEAN S&T cooperation and to propose new and innovative mechanisms for resource generation and organisational structures in order to meet the challenges of ASEAN Vision 2020. The subcommittees and various project management, coordination and steering committees also met during the year.

While COST itself looked at the broader policy and planning issues, the eight subcommittees continued project development, implementation and management in their respective priority areas. A large proportion of S&T cooperation activities, whether dialogue partner-funded or cost-shared among the ASEAN member countries, was put into human resources development activities, mostly short-term seminars, workshops, conferences and research attachments. Most were in the areas of marine and coastal resources management, telecommunications, quality assurance in food products and information networking, and database development in support of parallel research and development activities as well as demonstration projects in the same areas.

Of the 56 COST research, development and demonstration projects during this period, eight were completed, 21 are ongoing, 24 are in various stages of development and evaluation, and three are to be dropped. These projects were pursued in food science and technology, meteorology and geophysics, microelectronics and information technology, materials science and technology, biotechnology, non-conventional energy research, marine science, and science and technology infrastructure and resources development.

Information dissemination has also been given attention through the publication of four reports dealing with science and technology policy-making, planning and programme development.

The SCFST continued with the co-implementation of two AAECP Phase III projects. The first, Waste Water Treatment Technology Transfer and Cleaner Production Demonstration Project, is co-implemented with ASOEN. In the latter half of 1997, the sites for waste audits and demonstration activities were selected, and the pre-audit and pre-technology transfer workshops were conducted. The Waste Audit itself took place in the first quarter of 1998, with seminars and workshops on Waste and Environmental Auditing and on Cleaner Production conducted with the Phase 2 Waste Audits in each member country.

The second project, co-implemented with the SOM-AMAF under AAECP Phase III was Quality Assurance for ASEAN Fruits (Fresh and Minimally Processed). In-country Quality Assurance (QA) Workshops were conducted in Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia and Singapore in August 1997, to pave the way for quality planning studies and development of quality plans in Brunei Darussalam, and a systems analysis measured against ISO 9002 of the wholesale/retail section of the QA system in Singapore. Two other project workshops, of broader regional scope, were also conducted, one in Kuala Lumpur, Minimal Processing of Fresh Fruits in October 1997 and another, Food Safety in Minimal Processing of Fresh Fruits in Manila in March 1998. The demonstration projects are in progress, with the equipment having been procured and the implementing institutions completing their quality teams and conducting the consumer surveys and market research.

• ASEAN-Australia Economic Cooperation Programme (AAECP) Phase III: Waste Water Treatment Technology Transfer and Cleaner Production Project (co-implemented with ASOEN)

• ASEAN-Australia Economic Cooperation Programme (AAECP) Phase III: Quality Assurance for ASEAN Fruits, Fresh and Minimally Processed (co-implemented with SOM-AMAF)

• Sixth ASEAN Food Conference (co-sponsored with the Federation of Food Science and Technology Institutes in ASEAN)

• Establishment of a Training Network for Accelerated Development of the Food Industry in ASEAN

A major highlight was the Sixth ASEAN Food Conference held in Singapore in November 1997. The conference is a triennial event co-sponsored by the SCFST and the Federation of Institutes of Food Science and Technology in ASEAN (FIFSTA). The sixth conference featured technical conferences, poster sessions, a trade exhibition and presentation of student awards. The theme was "Food Science and Technology: Opportunities and Challenges".

The SCFST continued its implementation of the cost-shared human resources development project, Establishment of a Training Network for Accelerated Development of the Food Industry in ASEAN, with a Workshop on Predictive Microbiology held in Johor Baru, Malaysia, right after the food conference.

• ASEAN Specialised Meteorological

Centre (ASMC)

• ASEAN Network for Rapid Exchange of Strong Earthquake Data (ASNET-RESED)

The ASEAN Specialised Meteorological Centre (ASMC), a continuing project of the SCMG, has acquired a higher profile. Aside from the usual provision of weather-related information through quarterly reports and training of the region’s meteorology and geophysics specialists, the ASMC will now provide early warning service for all climate-related events. It also developed an atmospheric transport model for guidance in monitoring the spread of the smoke haze over the ASEAN region.

The SCMG started a new project, ASEAN Network for Rapid Exchange of Strong Earthquake Data (ASNET-RESED). This project will develop an Internet-based information network that will make available to ASEAN member countries data on strong earthquakes within a few minutes of occurrence.

• ASEAN-Australia Economic Cooperation Programme Phase III: Telecommunications Cooperation Training Project

• ASEAN-India Cooperation in Information Technology: ASEAN-India Digital Archive

The Telecommunications Cooperation Training Project is ongoing. A number of short-term training courses and workshops were held during the year, one on telecommunications business management in Bangkok in the fourth quarter of 1997, and another on telecommunications network planning and implementation in Adelaide, Australia, in the first quarter of 1998. The first workshops on the Internet and on rural communications were also held. The project has since undergone a major revision with the termination of the Internet and rural telecommunications components due to financial constraints.

A new project was started by the SCMIT under ASEAN-India Cooperation in Science and Technology. This project, ASEAN-India Digital Archive, aims to develop a multilingual and multicultural archive of multimedia resources available on the World Wide Web to various users.

The SMST has two ongoing programmes, one with New Zealand, and the other with India. Under the ASEAN-New Zealand Cooperation in Materials Science and Technology Programme, the project Corrosion Prevention in Infrastructure and Equipment is being undertaken in three phases. Phase I, Training, will be held in 1998 in New Zealand. Phase 2, Pilot Studies, will commence right after completion of training, and Phase 3, Information Dissemination will be highlighted by a regional symposium in Singapore in 2000.

• ASEAN-New Zealand Cooperation in Materials Science and Technology: Corrosion Prevention in Infrastructure and Equipment

• ASEAN-India Collaboration in Materials Science

Under the ASEAN-India Collaboration in Materials Science Programme, two projects are being implemented. These are (1) Wear Resistant and Thermal Barrier Coatings for Automotive and Other Applications, and (2) Development of Raw Material and NdFeB Magnets and Application Engineering. The project activities formally commenced in January 1998. A research attachment programme for the personnel working on the magnets project will be conducted in late July 1998.

• ASEAN-New Zealand Biotechnology Programme

• ASEAN-India Cooperation in Biotechnology

• ASEAN-Canada Biotechnology Information Network

Work on the ASEAN Biotechnology Information Network continues, with the provision of the services of a Canadian expert to assist Thailand on the feasibility study for the project.

Project development under the biotechnology cooperation programmes with India and with New Zealand continued during the year. The SCB is also looking into a possible collaborative research project with United National Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO).

• ASEAN-Australia Economic Cooperation Programme (AAECP) Phase III: Energy from Biomass Residues Project

• ASEAN-EC COGEN Energy Programme Phase II

• ASEAN-New Zealand Energy Cooperation Programme: Natural Gas Utilisation in Transport (NGUT) Project

The Project Coordinating Committee Meetings of the ASEAN-Australia Energy from Biomass Residues Project noted satisfactory progress in the demonstration projects of the participating countries. The Third Design Workshop on Monitoring and Evaluation was held in Jakarta in December 1997.

The ASEAN-EC COGEN Programme Phase II was extended until February 1999 in response to a positive evaluation by a team fielded by the EC for the programme. The EC approved the extension of the programme for another five years, with corresponding expansion of the areas of cooperation to include coal and natural gas, in addition to biomass residues.

The project Natural Gas Utilisation in Transport (NGUT) under the ASEAN-New Zealand Energy Cooperation Programme is now in its final year. Additional project funds to enable the inclusion of Vietnam and the eventual participation of Laos and Myanmar were made available by New Zealand in November 1997. A Diesel Conversion Workshop was held in Bangkok in April 1998.

• ASEAN-Canada Cooperative Programme on Marine Science Phase II

• ASEAN-Australia Economic Cooperation Programme (AAECP) Phase III: Coastal Zone Environmental and Resource Management Project (CZERMP)

• ASEAN-European Union (EU) Phase II Interdisciplinary Methodologies for the Sustainable Use and Management of Coastal Resources

The programme with Canada aims to develop safe standards for the marine environment and to protect human health and living marine resources, with a view to sustainable development of the resource. During the year, the activities carried out included practical attachments in Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, in July and August 1997, participation of ASEAN representatives in the CIDA-sponsored Regional Oceans Initiatives Workshop in August 1997, and at the Summit of the Sea Conference in September 1997.

As part of the setting up of the Red Tide Alert Network, under Component 3 of the cooperative programme with Canada, a Red Tide Network Coordinator Tour of Six ASEAN Nations was held in May-June 1997. In-country Toxicity Testing Workshops designed to increase chronic testing capabilities and expertise, integrate toxicity testing into environmental monitoring programs, and introduce sediment toxicity testing are being conducted under this component.

In the cooperative programme with Australia, progress has been made in institutional strengthening by setting into motion the necessary processes for the establishment of a National Environmental and Resource Information Centre (NERIC) in each participating ASEAN member country, including defining its mandate, roles and responsibilities, staffing and location, and seeking political and budgetary support. All countries are finalising the collection, evaluation, digitising and analyses of Graphic Information System (GIS) data on their coastal zones.

In the cooperative programme with the EU, the development of the global expert system, SIMCOAST, is progressing well. SIMCOAST is an intelligent soft computing system based on a fuzzy logic rule-based expert system designed for integrated coastal zone planning policy. One SIMCOAST workshop on Managed Ecosystems was held in Makati City, Philippines in August 1997, another in Vietnam in December 1997. Three more workshops are in preparation, one on Industrial Development to be held in Kiel, Germany in 1998; one on Urban and Resort Development in Malaysia in 1998; and the third is a workshop on major environmental inputs.

Sub-Committee on Science and Technology Infrastructure and Resources Development (SCIRD)

• ASEAN-UNDP ASP-5 Sub-Programme in Technology:

Element III: Public-Private Collaboration in Regional S&T Development

Element IV: Technology and Environment

• ASEAN Science and Technology Information Network (ASTNET)

• ASEAN-ROK Project on Supporting the Establishment of S&T Manpower Development System

• ASEAN-New Zealand Cooperation on Technology Transfer and Commercialisation of R&D Results

• ASEAN Journal on S&T for Development

• Technology Scan

The various projects saw SCIRD undertaking activities in the areas of S&T management and networking, information dissemination and publications, human resources development and S&T promotion.

COST-33 identified ASEAN Science and Technology Network (ASTNET) as a flagship project and assigned SCIRD to take charge of its establishment. To address the implementation issues, an experts group meeting was held in Singapore in July 1997. ASTNET will result in the development of information management systems in support of the activities of COST and its subcommittees. The database on ASEAN S&T Indicators, whose completion was reported last year, will be part of a broader range of databases that will be available in ASTNET. Aside from drawing up an implementation plan for ASTNET, the experts group meeting also made recommendations for future development, including planning for the setting up of an Advanced Science and Technology Research and Education Network for ASEAN (ASTRENA) to eventually evolve, with the integration of other ASEAN information networks, into an ASEAN Information Infrastructure (AII).

Preparations of the subcommittee for the establishment and operation of ASTNET was given a boost with the organisation of the ASEAN-National Research Council (NRC) of Canada S&T Networking Seminar and Workshop held in Ottawa, Canada in September 1997, which introduced to SCIRD the advanced electronic networking techniques developed by NRC for its Canadian Technology Network.

Another flagship project identified by COST-33 is the Roundtable on Technology Scan. To help crystallise concepts and approaches involved in setting up a technology scan mechanism, a roundtable discussion was organised to bring together ASEAN and international experts to share experiences and exchange views. The discussion was held in Bali, Indonesia in August 1997, with funding support from the ASEAN-UNDP ASP-5 Sub-Programme in Technology. Recommendations for the project implementation were presented to COST at the 34th Meeting in Kuala Lumpur in November 1997.

The SCIRD implemented two other elements of the ASEAN-UNDP ASP-5 Sub-Programme in Technology, namely (i) Element III: Public-Private Collaboration in Regional Science and Technology Development, and (ii) Element IV: Technology and Environment. Both projects were completed during the year.

Two issues of the ASEAN Journal on Science and Technology for Development, a continuing project of the subcommittee, with funding from the ASEAN Science Fund, were published. These are Volume 14, No. 1 and No. 2. Volume 15, No. 1, is currently in preparation.

The ASEAN-ROK Project, Supporting the Establishment of S&T Manpower Development System, held its second workshop in Cheju, Republic of Korea, in July 1997. The final report by the Korean implementing institution is being awaited. Planning and organisation for further activities of the ASEAN-New Zealand Cooperation on Technology Transfer and Commercialisation of R&D Results are awaiting the results of a review of the comments forwarded by SCIRD to New Zealand.

SCIRD is monitoring preparations for the Fifth ASEAN Science and Technology Week, to be hosted by Vietnam in October 1998. All subcommittees are preparing to organise technical conferences in their priority areas of concern.

The SCIRD looks after the ASEAN Experts Group on Remote Sensing which has its own set of projects in their area of expertise.

• ASEAN Earth Observation Applications Programme

• Publication of "ASEAN From Space"

• Technology of Updating Maps Using Remote Sensing

The ASEAN Earth Observation Applications Programme is supported through cost-sharing by member countries. The project takes off from the successful implementation of the ASEAN-EU Project, Improvement of Natural Resources Management and Environmental Monitoring through the Use of ESA ERS-1 Capabilities in ASEAN Countries, completed in June 1996. An initial project under this programme is the study of oil spills in the Malacca Straits, the South China Sea, the Gulf of Thailand and other areas in the Southeast Asian region.

Preparations to publish ASEAN From Space are also progressing. Working groups have been formed by member countries to select the satellite images and write the articles.

Funding support for the series of seminars and workshops under the project Technology of Updating Maps Using Remote Sensing is being organised by the expert group and their Australian counterparts.

The 1997 haze episodes caused by land and forest fires were the most severe in ASEAN’s history, particularly in Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore. The disaster has had extensive economic, health, ecological and political impact in Indonesia as well as in neighbouring countries. The fire and haze disasters have caused untold damage, severely affecting numerous economic sectors, including air, water and land transport, construction, tourism and agriculture. In some areas, airports had to be closed, forcing the cancellation of numerous flights as navigation became risky. Schools, factories and businesses were shut down.

The haze disaster in the region has drawn ASEAN member countries together in a joint effort to combat the problem. The Second ASEAN Senior Officials on Environment (ASOEN) Haze Technical Task Force (HTTF) Meeting in Jakarta in August 1997 decided upon the appropriate steps to deal with ground and forest fires and transboundary haze. This was followed by the Seventh ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on the Environment (AMME) which agreed that ASEAN member countries should intensify cooperation to address the problem and welcomed international cooperation and assistance to strengthen ASEAN’s ability to combat the problem, as stated in the Jakarta Declaration on Environment and Development.

The Third ASOEN HTTF Meeting held in Kuala Lumpur in November 1997 released a draft of the Regional Haze Action Plan (RHAP). The plan sets out urgent cooperative measures required to address the pressing need to fight land and forest fires in the region and prevent their recurrence. This issue was further discussed at the Fourth ASOEN HTTF Meeting and the First ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on Haze (AMMH) in Singapore in December 1997. The environment ministers of member countries adopted the revised RHAP and agreed that Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia would continue to spearhead and coordinate the three main areas of work: preventive measures (Malaysia), monitoring measures (Singapore) and strengthening fire-fighting capabilities (Indonesia).

As a demonstration of their commitment and determination to address the problem, the environment ministers decided that the ASOEN HTTF should convene every month to review the progress of implementation of the RHAP while the ministers were to meet regularly to provide policy guidance. (Table 12). The Preparatory Meeting on National Haze Action Plans was held in Manila in June 1998.

ASEAN’s haze-fighting efforts have attracted funding support from the ADB. The ADB has approached ASOEN, through the ASEAN Secretariat, to fund the Regional Technical Assistance (RETA) project, Strengthening ASEAN’s Capacity to Mitigate Transboundary Atmospheric Pollution. The primary objective of the project is to strengthen ASEAN’s capacity to operationalise and monitor implementation of the RHAP in order to prevent and mitigate transboundary atmospheric pollution, including haze. The RETA commenced in May 1998 for a duration of one year and included the setting up of a project team based at the ASEAN Secretariat to assist in coordinating and implementing the required tasks.

At the Fifth Meeting of the ASOEN HTTF in Jakarta in January 1998, the progress of implementation of the RHAP was discussed and the follow-up activities in the respective areas endorsed. At the Sixth Meeting of the ASOEN HTTF in Kuching, Malaysia in February 1998 the developments in the implementation of the RHAP with respect to the three components of the action plan were reviewed.

The Second AMMH held back-to-back with this ASOEN-HTTF conclave decided that the Secretary General of ASEAN should confirm, on behalf of ASEAN, the letter of agreement between ASEAN and the ADB for the RETA. This was signed on 5 March 1998. The ministers welcomed the opportunity to collaborate closely with and receive possible assistance from the US government and other international donors in addressing the land and forest fires and haze-related issues facing the region.

The progress of the RHAP was further reviewed at the Seventh Meeting of ASOEN HTTF and the Third AMMH in Bandar Seri Begawan in April 1998. The Ministers endorsed the establishment of an ASEAN Research and Training Centre for Land and Forest Fire Management in Palangkaraya University in Central Kalimantan. Steps were taken to establish two Sub-Regional Firefighting Arrangements (SRFAs), for Kalimantan and Sumatra.

The ministers reviewed the progress in achieving the aims of the three components of the RHAP. In order to strengthen the RHAP, they agreed that the National Haze Action Plans of each member country will be considered further during the ASEAN Workshop on National Haze Action Plans in Jakarta in June 1998. The ministers acknowledged with appreciation international assistance from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the ADB and the US government. They also welcomed the increasing role of the private sector and nongovernmental organisations in national and local efforts to combat, prevent and mitigate fires.

The Eighth Meeting of the ASOEN held in Cebu, Philippines in September 1997 reviewed the activities undertaken since the previous ASOEN meeting. These included endorsing the proposal on the project ASEAN Environment Year 2000 and the revised proposal on general guidelines of the ASEAN Award, a series of four regional training seminars on trade and environmental issues, the establishment of an ASEAN Regional Centre for Biodiversity Conservation (ARCBC) in the Philippines and initiatives to achieve the long-term environmental goals for ambient air and river water quality for the region. These activities and projects were endorsed by the Seventh AMME in Jakarta in September 1997.

The Jakarta Declaration on the Environment and Development which the Seventh AMME issued reflected the ASEAN environment ministers concern for ASEAN to seriously take into account the ecological impact of national, regional and global economic growth and reiterated their commitment to overcoming environmental problems and the need for the region to take more concrete joint action to address these issues.

During the period under review, four projects were completed, while nine were still ongoing(Table 13). Twenty-six are now pending and five have been dropped. These projects and activities were conducted under the purview of the various ASOEN working groups whose activities are described beow.

The Seventh Meeting of the ASEAN Working Group on Nature Conservation (AWGNC), held in Bangkok in June 1997, discussed progress made towards the establishment of the ASEAN Regional Centre on Biodiversity Conservation (ARCBC). The centre is one of the ASOEN flagship projects under this working group and has four components: (i) networking and institution building, (ii)training (iii)research, and (iv)database establishment and information dissemination. After negotiations between ASEAN and the EU, the ARCBC Financing Agreement was signed in June 1997 in Brussels and in July 1997 in Manila by the respective EU and ASEAN authorities.

In response to the directive from the Seventh ASOEN Meeting held in Malaysia in September 1996, requesting AWGNC to review and assess the relevance of the ASEAN Agreement on the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources. In view of the fact that several international agreements such as the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), and the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) had come into force, the 7th AWGNC Meeting agreed to request the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) to review and assess the relevance of the Agreement. It further agreed that the results of the review by IUCN will be distributed to all other member countries for a final decision.

In response to this, it was decided at the Eighth ASOEN Meeting in September 1997 in Cebu, Philippines that the AWGNC would be the appropriate body to review the agreement and that in its review exercise, the AWGNC may seek advice from IUCN experts on a personal basis and only to provide technical input. It was further agreed that the review should include the new ASEAN member countries.

Issues relating to land and sea-based marine pollution were the main topic discussed at the Sixth Meeting of the ASEAN Working Group on ASEAN Seas and Marine Environment in Bali, Indonesia in May 1997.

Implementation of the Coastal Zone Environmental and Resources Management Project (CZERMP) will continue throughout 1998. This project is a collaborative activity between ASEAN member countries and Australia under Phase III of the ASEAN-Australia Economic Cooperation Program (AAECP). The Amendment of the Exchange of Notes for including Vietnam’s participation in the project was finalised in March 1998.

Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) was the area of concern at the Seventh Meeting of the ASEAN Working Group on Transboundary Pollution (AWGTP), held in Phuket, Thailand in May 1997. The working group recommended the close monitoring and communication at national levels of the development of matters concerning POPs undertaken by international and regional organisations, particularly the Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution and the development of criteria for identifying additional POPs.

Among international environmental issues, the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal and Framework Convention on Climate Chang is one of the most important issues under the purview of this working group. The AWGTP is committed to strengthening cooperation through the exchange of information on updates of national programmes in these areas. Common ASEAN positions adopted during the Seventh AMME and the Second AMMH were presented at the Third Conference of Parties (COP3) of the Framework Convention of Climate Change held in Kyoto, Japan in December 1997 and for the Fourth Conference of Parties (COP4) of the Basel Convention in Kuching, Malaysia in February 1998.

The Fifth Meeting of the ASEAN Working Group on Environmental Management (AWGEM), held in Singapore in June 1997, developed an ASEAN programme on environmental management aimed at achieving long-term environmental goals for ambient air and river water quality for ASEAN countries. The Eighth ASOEN Meeting in Cebu, Philippines, agreed to present the ASEAN initiatives at the Seventh AMME. At this meeting, the proposed recommendation for the implementation of the Framework to Achieve the Long-Term Environment Goals for Ambient Air and River Water Qualities for ASEAN Countries was endorsed.

The ASEAN-USAID Environmental Improvement Project, which provides assistance in policy and institutional development, training, technology commercialisation and investment promotion, is scheduled to be completed in June 1998.

The AWGEM implemented several cross-sector projects in collaboration with other ASEAN committees such as the Committee on Science and Technology (COST) and the Senior Officials Meeting on Energy (SOME). The AAECP III Waste Water Treatment Technology Transfer and Cleaner Production Demonstration Project is a joint activity between ASEAN and COST, with the objective of fostering environmentally sustainable development in the ASEAN region through the implementation of cleaner production technologies and improved wastewater treatment in the textile, food processing and distilling industries.

Another joint project between ASOEN and SOME, also funded under the AAECP III, is Electricity and the Environment: A Framework for Decision Making in the ASEAN Region project. The objectives of the project are:

The Seventh Meeting of the ASEAN Working Group on Environmental Economics (AWGEE) was held in Kuala Lumpur in May 1997. The Environmental and Natural Resources Accounting (ENRA) project, which started in September 1996 with funding support from Canada, has been completed. The ENRA researchers met in Manila in March 1998 to finalise the report of the project. The final report was presented at the Eighth AWGEE Meeting in Kuala Lumpur. The major thrusts of the ENRA studies is the development of practical accounting systems for natural and environmental resources for both individual and collective application.

With the adoption of the Guidelines and Recommendations on ASEAN Policies on Trade and Environment, and in line with the ASOEN decision to identify and prepare projects on the training of environment officials on trade and environmental issues, the ASEAN Secretariat conducted four regional training seminars under the UNDP-ASP5 Programme:

Campaigns to highlight environmental issues in ASEAN and cooperative programmes in order to stimulate awareness of these issues among the ASEAN populace and the world at large were first organised under the project ASEAN Environment Year 1995. As a result of the Seventh Meeting of the ASEAN Working Group on Environmental Information, Public Awareness and Education held in Bandar Seri Begawan in July 1997, it was decided that the next ASEAN Environment Year event will be held in 2000 and will comprise activities that highlight ASEAN’s environmental challenges and opportunities revolving around the theme ‘Our Heritage , Our Future’. Based on the recommendations of the Eighth ASOEN Meeting, the Seventh AMME considered the proposal and endorsed ASEAN Environment Year 2000 as an ASOEN flagship project.

Another ASOEN flagship project under this working group is the ASEAN Environment Award, which was also endorsed by the Seventh AMME. The objective of the award is to give recognition to ASEAN environmentalists for their outstanding contributions to the protection and betterment of the environment nationally and/or regionally, through sustained and inspiring efforts. Both individuals and organisations are eligible for the ASEAN Environment Award.

The ASEAN Environmental Education Action Plan is one of the projects to be funded by the Hanns Seidel Foundation. The objectives of the plan are:

The programmes and activities of the ASEAN Committee on Culture and Information (COCI) for 1997-1998 were implemented to:

At the 32nd Meeting of the ASEAN Committee on Culture and Information held in Langkawi, Malaysia in July 1997, the Philippines formally handed over the stewardship of COCI to Singapore for 1997-2000. COCI’s four working groups also had a changeover of chairs.

• Committee on Culture and Information, Singapore

• Working Group on Literary and ASEAN Studies, Malaysia

• Working Group on Visual and Performing Arts, Indonesia

• Working Group on Print and Interpersonal Media, Singapore

• Working Group on Radio/Television and Films/Video, Thailand

Pursuant to the Declaration of the Fifth ASEAN Summit held in Bangkok in December 1995, COCI’s projects for 1997 included flagship or high-profile projects. Five COCI projects were carried out starting in 1997 (Table 14):

The main theme of ASEAN functional cooperation and other relevant summit directives related to culture and information were incorporated in COCI’s second plan of action on culture and information for 1997-2000. As part of the effort to publicise ASEAN activities in the area of functional cooperation, the magazine ASEAN InterFaCe covered a variety of activities and concerns in the fields of science and technology, culture and information, and environment and social development.

COCI embarked on two recommendations made by the Fourth Conference of the ASEAN Ministers Responsible for Information (AMRI) in Singapore in February 1996: (i) the expansion of the ASEANWEB to include homepages for culture and information and (ii) the development of an ASEAN Satellite Channel to promote ASEAN in the region and overseas. A third recommendation, to hold a forum on the Internet to exchange views on policy and regulatory frameworks, had been implemented earlier. At the forum, it was observed that regulations and laws were necessary in order to set up a framework for the Internet to develop and flourish, given the great potential for business, information and cultural exchange.

Two meetings of information technology (IT) experts were held, the first in the Philippines in October 1997 and the second at the ASEAN Secretariat in February 1998. At the first meeting, the format of the regional homepage on culture and information was drawn up, as were the requirements for each country’s national homepage. The expanded ASEANWEB was officially launched during the Fifth Conference of the AMRI held in Bangkok in July 1998.

The 4/30 ASC held in Bali, May 1997 tasked the ASEAN Secretariat to provide more information on the cost of duplicating CD-ROMs for the multimedia showcase. The ASEAN Secretariat placed the results on the ASEAN Web and copied the information to a recordable CD-ROM for reproduction.

The proposal to develop an ASEAN Satellite Channel is in line with the need to harness technological advances in communications to promote awareness of ASEAN. A technical experts meeting for this was convened in Kuala Lumpur in December 1996, at which technical specifications, programmes, marketing plan and strategy, organisational structure and human resource development, financial plan and supervisory committee, plus other aspects of setting up such a channel, were discussed. The recommendations are being studied by AMRI’s Senior Officials Meeting. The development of the ASEAN Satellite Channel could provide significant opportunities particularly in projecting ASEAN internationally.

COCI’s second three-year programme cycle started in 1997, incorporating the following as agreed at the 31st Meeting of COCI and at the combined meeting of its four working groups in Udon Thani, Thailand, in March 1997:

To mark the 30th anniversary year of ASEAN, COCI implemented a number of projects to highlight the occasion:

Twenty-seven projects were endorsed at the 32nd Meeting of COCI held in Langkawi, Malaysia in July 1997 for the coming year (six projects under culture, seven projects under information, four meetings of COCI’s working groups, seven special projects and three projects co-funded with dialogue partners Australia and Japan). The ASC approved the expenditure of about US$3million for these projects (Table 15).

A COCI flagship project, the Exhibition of ASEAN Cultural Heritage "Textile weaving: From Loom to Computer" was opened in time for the Informal ASEAN Summit held in Kuala Lumpur in December 1997. The exhibition showcased various textile-weaving techniques ranging from traditional to modern computer-aided design. The exhibition was launched on 15 December 1997 and displayed at the National Museum in Kuala Lumpur for two months. A symposium on ASEAN’s cultural heritage was held at the National Museum in Kuala Lumpur in December 1998 as part of the project. The National Library of Malaysia organised ASEAN: Meeting of Minds, an exhibition of ASEAN publications and information resources. Malaysia will be producing and distributing a catalogue and compact discs on the exhibition as part of the project.

The Workshop on Conservation and Restoration of Monuments and Sites for Young Professionals was held in Borobudur, Prambanan near Yogyakarta, Indonesia, in June 1998. The aim of the project was to develop human resources in the conservation and restoration of monuments and sites. The workshop report serves as an important reference for young ASEAN archaeologists.

A five-day workshop, Public Communications in Museums was held in Singapore in June 1998. Participants exchanged views and experiences on museum education, marketing and publicity. The seminar, Comparative Museology and Museography in ASEAN was held in Manila in April 1997. The proceedings of the seminar were published in December 1997.

The three-year programme, Exchange of ASEAN Archivists, culminated in the holding of the fifth exchange in Singapore in May 1997 and the sixth exchange in Brunei in October 1997. The project seeks to en hance understanding of archival policies, procedures and practices among ASEAN member countries, promote cooperation in archives activities and enhance the exchange of archival materials pertinent and of interest to ASEAN archival institutions.

The three-year Management Training Programme for ASEAN Senior Librarians culminated in of its third activity in Singapore in November 1997, focusing on Quality Service for All.

The Second Seminar on Strategic Studies of ASEAN Cultures was held in Kuching, Sarawak, in May 1997 and covered: (i) culture and urbanisation, (ii) culture and tourism, and (iii) culture and community. The aim was to examine both the past and the present in order to provide a better intellectual framework for the understanding of ASEAN, and to formulate or define the necessary concepts and terminology that best reflect the content of ASEAN culture as manifested in the heritage of member countries. A publication on the proceedings of the seminar is scheduled for June 1998. The publication of the proceedings would be completed in September 1998.

COCI’s three-year project, ASEAN Flagship Voyage: A Performing Arts Tour Across ASEAN, took off when the Working Group on Visual and Performing Arts agreed to organise and present a contemporary production of the traditional epic Ramayana. The performance will premier during the Sixth ASEAN Summit in Hanoi in December 1998. Preparatory production meetings took place in Brunei in December 1997 and in the Philippines in February 1998 to thresh out details such as the production concept, script, musical scores, costumes, choreography, lighting and stage settings.

Sonic Orders in ASEAN Traditional Music is a project that entails two panel meetings of expert musicologists, field and academic research, and compilation of digital audio tape recordings in each member country. At the first panel meeting in Singapore in May 1998, the format, methodology field and academic research, transcriptions and publication matters were discussed. This research project will result in a book on the major sonic orders in ASEAN, particularly on the frequency values of the intervals in the pitch orders (scale systems). A set of immersion recordings in the form of compact discs will also be produced. These recordings will demonstrate how modern recording technology extends the reach and capability of the aural mode (non-written basis). The book and compact discs are expected to be completed in September 1999.

The ASEAN Youth Friendship Camp, a COCI flagship project, was held in San Pablo City, Laguna, Philippines in June-July 1998. Dubbed ‘Nature Hug’, the art camp gathered 99 ASEAN youths who attended lectures, demonstrations and tutorial activities on conducting musical presentations, visual arts exhibitions, and literary and popular writing. The focus of the art camp was on the need for ASEAN youths to enhance, preserve and promote the environment through art in their own country and the ASEAN region as a whole. The culminating activity of the camp was an integrated performance of all the member-country delegates at the amphitheatre of the Philippine exposition in Clark, Pampanga, Philippines.

As a special project for ASEAN’s 30th anniversary, COCI finalised the selection of an ASEAN anthem at its 32nd Meeting in Langkawi in July 1997. The entry from the Philippines was selected and endorsed by the ASC. The 30th ASEAN Ministerial Meeting, however, decided to call the song the ASEAN theme song. At the 33rd COCI Meeting in Singapore in May 1998, it was agreed in the plenary that the anthem be called the ASEAN Song of Unity.

An experts meeting for the project ASEAN Traditional Folk Arts and Crafts was held in Manila in October 1997. The project seeks to undertake an organised approach to the survey and documentation of traditional folk arts and crafts in the region and to plan projects and activities on their preservation. To accomplish this, each member country was required to conduct a matrix of crafts to develop a national profile. The publication of the compiled matrices is expected to be completed by November 1998.

The ASEAN Composers’ Forum on Traditional Music was held in Thailand in December 1997. This forum aims to discover and develop modes of musical expression in the region that are directly related to ASEAN culture and traditions and to preserve their cultural identity from a national and regional perspective.

COCI agreed to continue its ASEAN in Action radio programme for the next three-year cycle. For the programme, each member country produces a 15-30 minute radio programme, aired once a week over national radio to promote awareness of ASEAN. An Evaluation and Production Meeting of ASEAN in Action IV (1997-1998) was held in Singapore in September 1997. According to surveys conducted in each member country, the programme is gaining listenership, especially since the introduction of the ASEAN quiz segment. Some member countries have also aired the programme on their overseas radio service. For this cycle, member countries started their programmes in January 1998. Laos and Myanmar participated for the first time.

COCI also agreed to continue the ASEAN Television News Exchange as part of its three-year plan. The TV news exchange programme aims to sustain the regular exposure of and interest in ASEAN and its activities as well as in the current affairs of member countries throughout the region through a weekly segment titled ASEANEWS.

Singapore hosted the Third Information Management Workshop for ASEAN Information/Public Affairs Officers in October-November 1997. The objectives of the two-week workshop, designed for middle-level ASEAN information and public affairs officers, were to (i) upgrade professional skills, (ii) initiate understanding of how governments can effectively manage information, particularly in publicising government policies and campaigns, including interpersonal communication, and (iii) provide opportunities for them to share and exchange experiences through interactive sessions. The workshop was designed by ASEAN-COCI Singapore in close collaboration with Training for the International Public Services (TIPS), formerly known as the Central Office of Information (COI).

Information Highways: Policy and Regulation in the Construction of Global Infrastructure in ASEAN is a project which aims to initiate discussions to develop a framework for possible cooperation among ASEAN countries on issues central to transborder communication. Coordinated by the School of Communication Studies of Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University (NTU) and the Asian Media Information and Communication Centre (AMIC), the project has commissioned research institutions of member countries to prepare a series of empirical country studies and five special research papers. The research output will have studied policies on transborder communication in ASEAN countries. The articles, country research findings and conference recommendations will be published in a monograph and disseminated by end-March 1999.

The seminar-cum-workshop for sports news writers under the ASEAN News Exchange Programme is scheduled to take place in mid-1998. Its aims are to upgrade the skills of sportswriters by sharpening their reporting abilities in covering events such as the SEA Games and the Asian Games.

Indonesia hosted the Training Workshop on the Application of Pre-Press Technology in the Production of Specialised Government Publications in Semarang, Indonesia in November-December 1997. This project involved ASEAN government information officers who were introduced to the hi-tech pre-press equipment to enhance their skills in the production of specialised publications.

In the Study on COCI’s Training Needs Assessment, COCI sought to identify human resources development needs of member countries in the field of information and mass media. The study was undertaken by a consultant who designed a survey instrument for the purpose. During a workshop in Bangkok, a set of recommendations to COCI was drawn up.

COCI’s contributions to ASEAN’s 30th anniversary celebrations were the ASEAN Festival of Songs and the ASEAN Awards for Culture and Information. Both were held in Jakarta on 7 August 1997 at the Television Republik Indonesia (TVRI) station. The song festival was telecast live by TVRI and five other private television channels in Indonesia. A delayed telecast followed in other member countries

At the request of the ASEAN Secretary General, COCI organised an ASEAN entertainment programme for the launch of the 30th anniversary celebrations on 8 August 1997 at the Jakarta Convention Centre. Mr. Soeharto, then-president of Indonesia, launched the year-long 30th anniversary celebration. On display at the centre was a photo exhibition of the ASEAN Awards in Culture and Information.

COCI funded a video documentary, ASEAN at 30, and a publication with the same title for the 30th anniversary. Copies of the documentary were sent to all member countries for broadcast as well as to ASEAN committees in third countries. Copies of the publication were sent to all diplomatic and trade missions of ASEAN countries and to all committees.

The ASEAN Secretariat conducted a three-day training workshop in October 1997 with the aim of providing technical skills in formulating project proposals for ASEAN cooperation activities. The course was conducted by UNDP consultant Dr. Robert Griffin and attended by 25 participants from the national COCI secretariats of member countries and five officers and staff members from the ASEAN Secretariat. The participants undertook practical exercises in project formulation from case studies based on the principles and procedures of the manual. Feedback from participants indicated that the course was a success.

ASEAN and Australia co-funded the project Study Tour of ASEAN Art Museum Professionals which took place in Australia in April 1998. It included a workshop in Melbourne and a study tour of museums in Melbourne, Canberra, Sydney and Brisbane. The objective of the study tour was to give participants the opportunity to see both strategic and practical models of museum management as well as to be able to observe specific practices such as selection, planning, display, handling, storage and data management.

Another cost-shared project with Australia was the Three-Year Development Plan for Film and Video Archives in the ASEAN Region. Since 1995, a series of training seminars have been held:

At the Workshop on the ASEAN Catalogue of Film and Television Production held in Quezon City, Philippines, in December 1997, implementation guidelines for the development and maintenance of the ASEAN database for film and television productions were adopted. The guidelines include the criteria for the selection of titles, standards for data entry and the regional access policy. The main objective is to standardise film and video cataloguing practices in the ASEAN region. Australia has provided each member country with a computer equipped with the Merged Audio Visual Archive Information Network Software (MAVIS) for use in the project.

The Training Course on the Archival Management of Machine Electronics Readable Records, later renamed the Training Course on Archival Management of Electronic Records, was conducted in Vancouver, Canada, in May-June 1997. The Training Internship on Audio-Visual Records Management, however, has yet to be implemented.

COCI agreed to share the implementation costs of the ASEAN-Japan Multinational Cultural Mission (MCM), a project initiated by Japanese Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashi–moto in January 1997. The mission’s objective is to draw up a new framework for cultural cooperation between ASEAN and Japan aimed at broadening and deepening traditional ties through cultural exchange and cooperation. At the MCM inaugural meeting in Singapore in November 1997, participants recommended Action Agenda I for the identification and development of projects:

In February 1998, the MCM divided itself into three groups that visited ASEAN member countries to hold dialogues with intellectuals and cultural officials. A concluding meeting was held in Japan in mid-April 1998, at which Action Agenda II was drawn up. The Action Agenda II included a range of activities to be considered for future ASEAN-Japan cooperation.

The year has been an eventful and challenging one for social development in ASEAN. Since July 1997, the ASEAN economies have been ravaged by the financial and economic crisis. Governments and international aid agencies are concerned about the crisis undermining the progress made by the region in reducing the incidence of poverty during the past two decades of unprecedented economic growth. A technical report, The Social Impact of the Asian Financial Crisis, published by the International Lobour Organization (ILO) in conjunction with its High-Level Tripartite Meeting on Social Responses to the Financial Crisis in East and Southeast Asian Countries held in Bangkok in April 1998, suggested that unemployment will be the major social impact of the crisis as the affected economies achieve near-zero Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth or in some cases negative growth.

About the countries most affected by the crisis, the ILO report stated that millions will lose their jobs as a result of retrenchment, especially in the construction, financial services and manufacturing sectors and unemployment will disproportionately affect school-leavers and women. In view of the greater incidence of unemployment, the report predicts that the impressive trends in poverty reduction achieved in the past 20 years will be reversed. Given the enormity of the social fall-out from the crisis, much will have to be done to ensure that the social impact is not neglected in the rush to produce economic and financial solutions.

Over the past year, the ASEAN Secretariat and the Committee on Social Development (COSD) subsidiary bodies have formulated several initiatives to address the social impact of the crisis. For example, the ASEAN Secretariat has initiated the prepenation of a programme, with funding from the UNDP, to assess the adverse impact of the crisis on labour and employment, taking into account existing studies and research already undertaken by various national, international and non-governmental bodies. A major objective of the study is to formulate a regional work programme comprising priority projects at the regional level and activities to support national initiatives. Also planned is a more comprehensive study to look into the impact of the crisis on social development, such as on youth, women, health and nutrition, AIDS, children and social welfare.

ASEAN cooperation in social development is well poised to tackle the unprecedented challenges for social development coming in the wake of the regional financial crisis

The ASEAN Regional Project on Human Resources Development Planning under the ASEAN Subcommittee on Labour Affairs was implemented, with funding from the UNDP, in May 1998. The project will provide an opportunity for ASEAN member countries to strengthen their capacity for formulating employment policies, especially with respect to labour market monitoring and planning, and in ensuring that human resources development policies will be coordinated with national economic development policies.

At the Fifth ASEAN Summit held in December 1995 in Bangkok, the ASEAN heads of government declared that ASEAN will improve the quality of life of its peoples by improving the quality of and access to social services and working towards the reduction of poverty. Among the programmes developed by the COSD subsidiary bodies in response to this mandate are:

At the Fifth ASEAN Summit held in December 1995 in Bangkok, the ASEAN heads of government declared that ASEAN shall improve the quality of life of its peoples by improving the quality of and access to social services and working towards the reduction of poverty

A framework for elevating functional cooperation to a higher plane comprising a theme and six measures was adopted by the ASEAN Ministerial Meeting (AMM) held in July 1996 in Jakarta. The theme was shared prosperity through human development, technological competitiveness and social cohesiveness. Among the major measures relevant to the social development sector include high-profile or flagship projects, and ASEAN awards to individuals and organisations and projects using various cost-sharing schemes.

Over the past year, COSD achieved substantial progress in implementing these measures. In response to the AMM’s directive, the COSD subsidiary bodies designated eight projects as flagship projects. These were subsequently endorsed at the 20th Meeting of the ASEAN Committee on Social Development (COSD) held in Bandar Seri Begawan in September 1997 in and the first Meeting of the 31st ASC in Makati City, Philippines in October 1997. The projects are:

The subcommittees are preparing these projects/programmes during 1998. The COSD is currently developing a proposal on the ASEAN Social Development Award (ASDEV award) while the ASEAN Subcommittee on Youth (ASY) is developing a proposal for the ASEAN Youth Award to be conferred at the annual ASEAN Youth Day Meeting.

Guided by the theme for functional cooperation, shared prosperity through human development, technological competitiveness and social cohesiveness, promotes human welfare by empowering people to equip themselves for development and the Fifth ASEAN Summit directives related to social development, the COSD subsidiary bodies have formulated projects and programmes to address issues related to the disadvantaged, such as elderly persons, out-of-school youths, the informal sector and the protection of children’s welfare. Also proposed were initiatives to improve the working environment of ASEAN’s workers through the promotion of occupational safety and health.

The work of the COSD and its subsidiary bodies is increasingly guided by priorities identified at ASEAN summits and the preparation of work plans/programmes rather than on an ad-hoc basis. Thus, ASEAN cooperation in social development is well poised to tackle the unprecedented challenges for social development in the wake of the regional financial crisis.

During the past year, ASEAN youth cooperation achieved several important milestones. In November 1997, the Second ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on Youth (AMMY) was convened in Malaysia after a hiatus of nearly six years. Participants adopted the Kuala Lumpur Agenda on ASEAN Youth Development. Its objectives are preparing the region’s youth for responsible citizenship and to participate meaningfully in national development. A summary of the aims, strategies and priority areas of the KL Agenda are provided in Table 16.

The ministers asked the ASEAN Subcommittee on Youth (ASY) to adopt a programme approach for its activities, strengthen existing networks to promote the exchange of information on youth activities and training opportunities and enhance NGO participation in the ASY’s activities. The ministers agreed that human resources development programmes for youths be developed in view of the importance of education and training for youth development. To promote networking among youth and youth organisations in the region, the ministers asked the ASY to explore the possibility of linking the youth organisations in the region through the Internet or the ASEANWEB and to work with ASEAN travel associations to introduce special fares and tour packages for ASEAN youths.

In order to implement the KL Agenda and the recommendations of the Second AMMY, the ASY held its 15th Meeting in Solo, Indonesia in April 1998, and adopted a work plan to implement the decisions of the second. Among the highlights of the work plan are strategies for adopting a programme approach, enhancing the grassroots impact of ASY activities and promoting the exchange of youth in the region. The ASY distilled from the KL Agenda two priority thrusts––the cultivation of cultural and moral values to promote responsible citizenship and youth human resources development, and equipping the region’s youth with the requisite skills needed to enhance their economic welfare. To promote responsible citizenship, activities will be developed to enhance ASEAN awareness, family values, sustainable development (including environmental awareness) and social responsibility (including the promotion of youth voluntarism). Under youth human resources development, the ASY identified leadership development, skills training for out-of-school youths, entrepreneurship development, developing rural youths, and science and technology as priority areas. A coordinating country has been assigned to each area to develop a work programme incorporating existing and planned activities for consideration by the seventh ASEAN Youth Day Meeting to be held in Hanoi in August 1998

Young people moving from school to the workplace are especially vulnerable to unemployment. An ESCAP study on youth employment based on nine countries in the Asia-Pacific region suggests that among youth 15-19 years of age, the rate of unemployment tends to be twice that of the entire labour force. Recognising this problem, participants in the 14th ASY Meeting held in Hanoi in April 1997 agreed to adopt the project proposed by the ASEAN Secretariat, Developing a Programme to Address the Skills-Training Needs of Out-of-School Youths, as an ASY flagship project. Following the 14th ASY Meeting, the ASEAN Secretariat obtained funding from UNDP and started implementation of the project in October 1997. The project consultant undertook a feasibility study on the establishment of an ASEAN network of skills-training centres for out-of-school youths and prepared a work programme. A regional seminar was convened in Hanoi in December 1997 to review the studies completed by the country experts and to consider the ASEAN experts approach to the preparation of the feasibility study and work programme.

At the 15th ASY Meeting the feasibility study was endorsed in principle and it was agreed that the suggested options for networking would be further discussed at the ASEAN Workshop on Programme Managers and Associated Personnel for Out-of-school Youth (OSY) scheduled to be held in Hanoi in late 1998 with funding from the Japan ASEAN Exchange Projects (JAEP). A revised work programme on skills-training for out-of-school youths, with the following priority areas, was drafted:

To follow up on the implementation of the work programme, the 15th ASY Meeting agreed that Vietnam, as country coordinator for the priority area of skills training for out-of-school youths, will prepare a work plan on skills training for out-of-school youth (OSY) and to identify skills-training institutes which could belong in the proposed network and also select priority activities for institutionalising the network. These follow-up activities will be implemented during the ASEAN Workshop for Programme Managers and Associated Personnel for Out-of-School Youths to be held in Vietnam later in 1998.

Over the past year, the Sixth ASEAN Youth Day Meeting was held in Bangkok in August 1997 in conjunction with ASEAN Day (8 August), with funding from JAEP. A total of 48 youths attended the meeting, including those from Laos and Myanmar, the new member countries. The theme of the meeting was human resources development for youths and featured several papers focusing on preparing ASEAN youths to be more competitive and competent in an increasingly globalised world economy. The Seminar on Youth and Family Values was approved by the COSD in May 1997 and subsequently received ASC approval at the fifth meeting of the 30th ASC held in June 1997. The project, scheduled to be implemented in December 1998, aims to assess the importance of family values for youths in changing societies and to look into how family values can be maintained and adapted to the contemporary social context in ASEAN.

To give further publicity to ASEAN cooperation on youth matters, it was agreed, at the 15th ASY Meeting, that the Committee on ASEAN Youth Cooperation (CAYC), an ASEAN-affiliated youth NGO, could participate in ASY projects and that project coordinators would invite the media to raise the awareness of the public of project activities implemented by the ASY.

On the whole, ASEAN youth cooperation made important progress in addressing issues of central concern to youth development, such as unemployment among out-of-school youths––a subject that will increase in importance with the anticipated deepening of the social impact of the financial crisis. The ASY has made important strides to ensure that its activities in the future will be guided by work programmes and hence will have greater and more sustainable impact.

The 16th Meeting of the ASEAN Subcommittee on Women (ASW) was held in Bandar Seri Begawan in October 1997. The first time the body was meeting since its name was changed from the ASEAN Women’s Programme (AWP). Participants from the member countries at the 16th ASW Meeting exchanged experiences in the implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action. The ASEAN Confederation of Women’s Organisations (ACWO), an ASEAN-affiliated NGO, also participated in the 16th ASW proceedings.

It was decided at the 16th ASW that Thailand will be the overall coordinator for the organisation of a regional seminar which will mark the successful conclusion of the ASEAN Network for Women in Skills Training, begun in 1996. The Training Workshop on Enhancing Marketing Skills of Rural Women Micro-producers and Entrepreneurs was conducted in November 1996 in Port Dickson, Malaysia and the Training Workshop on Gender Perspective of Family Violence was conducted in October 1996 in Kuala Lumpur. Member countries which participated in the project expressed their appreciation for the experience gained through the exchange of information and national experiences and for the comprehensive scope of the pilot projects implemented in each country. The benefits afforded by the phase currently implemented has encouraged member countries to explore the possibility of continuing the project in a second phase, with wider participation of ASEAN countries.

An ASW flagship project, Strategies Toward the Implementation and Monitoring of the ASEAN Declaration on the Advancement of Women, to be implemented by the fourth quarter of 1998 is expected to deepen gender-sensitivity among policy-makers and therefore ensure that the role of women in development is considered in the formulation of national and regional policies. Representatives from all member countries will participate in the proposed closing workshop in Vietnam which aims to extract the lessons and insights gleaned from the pilot projects carried out in member countries.

Good health is not only an invaluable asset but also a prerequisite for social and economic development. Guided by the directives enunciated by the ASEAN Leaders at their Fifth Summit held in December 1995 in Bangkok and striving to achieve the goals included in ASEAN Vision 2020, ASEAN member countries over the past year have redoubled their efforts to enhance regional cooperation among themselves and with others in the health and nutrition sector through a number of activities in response to both immediate and long-term needs. In 1997, a Memorandum of Understanding on collaboration between ASEAN and WHO was signed. This document serves as a long-term foundation for cooperative efforts between ASEAN and WHO.

Technical Cooperation in Pharmaceutical Sectors initiated in 1979 is one of the projects under the ASEAN Subcommittee on Health and Nutrition (ASCH&N). It aims to strengthen the pharmaceutical sector so as to meet the objectives of the World Health Organisation (WHO )Action Programme on Essential Drugs and to achieve self-reliance in the training of staff. Since its inception, the implementation of the project has proved to be another success story of the collaboration between ASEAN and WHO.

Through the technical cooperation framework, many collaborative projects and activities were completed to directly or indirectly support the pharmaceutical sectors in member countries in ensuring the availability of safe, effective and good-quality pharmaceutical products in the region and in the training of required pharmaceutical staff. Many seminars and workshops have been held to prepare training materials for trainers in fields such as hospital pharmacy, drug supply management, drug evaluation, good manufacturing practices, drug information, laboratory quality control and production of reference substances. As a result, a significant number of training materials and reference substances have been prepared and training sessions were organised. Activities under the technical cooperation in pharmaceuticals among member countries were carried out in four phases: Phase I (1982-1983), Phase II (1984-1986), Phase III (1987-1991) and Phase IV (1992-1996). Activities are now being carried out under the latest phase, Phase V, which spans the years 1997 to 2001.

The 16th Meeting of the ASEAN Working Group on Technical Cooperation in Pharmaceuticals was held in Singapore in February 1998. Participants reviewed the implementation of the activities from June 1996-December 1997 and the work plan for the remaining activities under Phase V. New areas of collaboration, such as the harmonisation of technical requirements for drug registration and management of publications are produced by the programme.

This was a new endeavour by member countries to deal with an increasingly important issue in the region––the aging population. Recognising the need to foster and enhance regional cooperation in this respect, with funding support from the ASP-5 Subprogramme on Human Development, a seminar, Community-Based Care Programmes for the Elderly and the Disabled was held in Bangkok in August 1997 to identify common needs and concerns to be addressed at the regional level. The 15th meeting of the ASEAN Subcommittee on Health and Nutrition held in September 1997 in Bandar Seri Begawan adopted the ASEAN Work Programme on Community-Based Care Programmes for the Elderly. (Table 17). COSD subsequently endorsed it as a high-profile programme at its 20th Meeting in Bandar Seri Begawan in September 1997.

The 15th ASCH&N Meeting agreed that the activity Annual ASEAN Seminar on Ageing be implemented in 1998 on a cost-sharing basis, with Brunei Darussalam as project coordinator. At that meeting, it was also agreed that desk officers for ageing at the ASEAN Secretariat and in member countries be assigned to serve as focal points for all relevant ageing issues. That decision was later adopted by the 20th COSD Meeting as well as the First Meeting of the 31st ASC.

Regional cooperation on health and nutrition has taken place for many years. However, as these activities were not based on a framework, they did not have a tangible impact on the regional health and nutrition situation. That need will be met with the formulation of a Medium-term Plan of Collaboration on Health and Nutrition. The plan of action aims to assess the current regional health and nutrition situation, identify common problems and concerns to be addressed regionally, formulate a list of priority programme areas and project concepts and develop strategies for implementing these projects.

With funding support from the UNDP’s ASP-5 Subprogramme on Human Development, an ASEAN Expert and 10 national experts were recruited to help draft the plan. The meeting of the Working Group, instituted by the 15th Meeting of the ASEAN Subcommittee on Health and Nutrition in July 1996 in Chiang Mai, Thailand, was held in November 1997 in Hanoi. A regional report and a first draft was presented to the working group in Hanoi in November 1997. The working group agreed to include the following priority areas in the Plan of Collaboration:

On the basis of the priority programme areas, regional project concepts will be identified for further development into project proposals for regional implementation.

Over the past year, the collaboration between ASEAN and WHO has been boosted through various joint efforts, one of which is the formulation of an ASEAN Plan of Action for Strengthening Disease Surveillance in the ASEAN region.

With funding support from WHO, a consultant was commissioned in late July 1997. The consultant visited selected countries in the region for meetings and discussions with government officials and departments on issues relating to disease surveillance in the countries and the region.

The plan of action aims to strengthen coordination efforts in improving disease surveillance among member countries for the prevention and control of communicable diseases with epidemic potential and establishing regional self-reliance in disease surveillance and control of communicable diseases.

The first draft of the plan was considered by an experts group meeting held in Bangkok in June 1998, with the participation of all member countries and Cambodia.

ASEAN and WHO have intensified joint efforts to enhance cooperative programmes in health and nutrition. In addition to the collaborative endeavours already described, the two organisations are holding initial discussions on a tuberculosis control initiative for the ASEAN region. Like the Disease Surveillance Action Plan, the tuberculosis control initiative is in line with the priority programme areas included in the proposed Medium-Term Plan of Collaboration on Health and Nutrition and the MoU signed between ASEAN and WHO .

Held in Bangkok in June 1998, an experts group meeting considered the first draft of the Medium term Work Programme on Tuberculosis Control in ASEAN.

The promotion and strengthening of ASEAN awareness in the school system was the main focus of the fifth Meeting of the ASEAN Subcommittee on Education (ASCOE) held in September 1997 in Bangkok.

At this meeting, the project, Integrating ASEAN Studies in Primary and Secondary Schools’ Curricula was identified as an ASCOE flagship project. The project will identify shared concepts and curriculum practices among ASEAN member countries in developing ASEAN studies in school curricula and to determine possible entry points for integrating ASEAN concepts into the existing curricula at the primary and secondary levels. The project aims to produce a source book on ASEAN studies which could serve as a resource in the development of an ASEAN Studies curriculum. The source book will contain information about ASEAN––profiles of member countries comprising basic facts on culture, history, government structure, and economic and social indicators, as well as examples on how to integrate the information into the primary and secondary curricula.

The Fifth ASCOE Meeting held in Bangkok in September 1997, decided to request the assistance of the ASEAN University Network (AUN) Secretariat to expedite the preparation of the source book so that Part I of the project could be accomplished and the Philippines, as project coordinator, could convene a regional planning workshop to discuss the common framework and methodology for developing the national source books for each member country. The Philippines plans to host this workshop in August 1998 subject to the availability of the member countries.

Another ASCOE project, the ASEAN Students Exchange Programme at the Secondary Level, was designated a flagship project at the sixth ASCOE Meeting. Participants agreed that a technical meeting would be hosted by Malaysia on a cost-sharing basis to formulate a work plan for implementing the pilot programme at the secondary-school level and to prepare a proposal for a longer-term exchange programme as an ASCOE flagship project under the ASEAN Fund.

The Comparative Study on Employability Skills among Secondary School Students in ASEAN Countries aims, among other things, to examine teaching and absorption of employability skills among secondary school students in ASEAN as observed in their school curriculum, and to compare these employability skills. In order to review the terms of reference for the study and the cross-national validity of the eight sets of generic skills identified by the proposal, Malaysia will host a pre-project regional workshop, on a cost-sharing basis, to be attended by secondary school principals and curriculum development specialists.

The workshop on identification of areas of cooperation in tourism and hospitality among ASEAN countries was also endorsed at the fifth ASCOE Meeting. The aim of the workshop is to give participants an understanding of the importance and urgency of solving the problem of educational management and planning in the field of tourism and hospitality.

In 1997, member countries have made greater efforts to enhance their regional cooperation to respond to major concerns faced by the region, resulting in significant progress

In an effort to ensure that its work does not duplicate that of the Southeast Asian Ministers for Education Organisation (SEAMEO) which also undertakes regional cooperation on education, science and culture, it was agreed at the fifth ASCOE Meeting that the chairperson would discuss with the SEAMEO chairperson possible modalities for cooperation. The results of this discussion are to be presented at the sixth ASCOE Meeting to be held in 1998.

The adverse impact of the region’s financial and economic crisis on labour and employment in ASEAN was a major concern of the 12th ASEAN Labour Ministers Meeting in Hanoi in April 1998. The importance of developing the region’s human resources and enhancing the skills of its workforce were also addressed in the light of the crisis, as ASEAN braced itself to deal with the social impact of growing unemployment in member countries.

At the meeting, the ministers were informed of the ASEAN Secretariat’s effort to assist member countries to address the impact of the crisis. They commended the Secretariat’s initiative in seeking funding support for regional activities that would lessen the adverse social impact of the crisis. They also asked the Secretariat to explore, with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the possibility of developing an ASEAN regional programme on responses to the effects of the crisis. This regional programme would take into account the following recommendations:

UNDP informed the ASEAN Secretariat that funding from the UNDP ASP-5 Sub-programme could be used for a project to study the labour and employment impact of the crisis. The ASEAN Secretariat intends to formulate a plan of action to address the social impact of the crisis, including labour and employment. The Secretariat will also explore the possibility of collaborative projects on the subject with the ADB.

One activity under ongoing cooperation programmes among member countries in the field of labour and employment is the ASEAN Regional Project on Human Resources Development Planning. The project addresses the importance of human resources development for achieving a future workforce best suited to the development activities of ASEAN. The ASEAN Secretariat secured the funding assistance of UNDP for the project. The ultimate aim of the project is to ensure the availability of competent and skilled manpower in the region, which member countries will be able to use in an efficient manner. The project will focus primarily on helping member countries to devise human resources development planning strategies to enhance skills development in order to meet the challenge of the changing times and to contribute to the economic development of ASEAN. Activities to be carried out include strengthening human resources development planning and labour market monitoring and analysis in member countries, and establishing a regional human resources development planning and training institute.

The ASEAN labour ministers noted with satisfaction the success of another ASEAN project, Promotion of Self-Employment and Development in the Informal Sector (ASEAN Regional Project on Informal Sector Development), implemented with funding from the UNDP ASP-5 Sub-programme on Human Development. At the Regional Seminar on Informal Sector Development, held in Kuala Lumpur in October 1997, the priority areas to be included in a proposed ASEAN action plan on the informal sector development were agreed upon. The action plan will aim at: (i) creating a conducive legal and regulatory government environment; (ii) providing access to credit facilities, including microcredit; and (iii) providing social protection and improving working conditions. The plan is now being drafted and is expected to be completed soon.

The Third ASEAN Skills Competition is scheduled to be held in Thailand. Thirteen skills will be exhibited in the competition, with new categories such as ladies dressmaking, food and beverage services, and information technology. This is an increase from the 10 trade areas of the second competition, and illustrates the ASEAN workers’ widening range of interests in preparation for the next millennium.

At its ninth meeting held in February 1996 in Manila, the ASEAN Expert Group on Disaster Management (AEGDM) agreed that the Philippines would take the lead in drafting a Regional Programme on Disaster Management. The preparation of the regional programme was discussed at the 10th meeting of the AEGDM.

At the 10th AEGDM in Singapore in April 1998, the Philippines as outgoing chairman, reported the publication of four issues of the ADMIN newsletter. Also at this Meeting, Singapore offered to organise a specialised course in emergency behaviour management to address the needs of the ASEAN member countries. The course will help emergency behaviour officers (EBOs) to better manage community stress and to provide psychological support for disaster victims alongside existing medical and other emergency services. Singapore also invited ASEAN member countries to use her training facilities in special collapsed building rescue training.

It has been estimated that more than one million people in the ASEAN region are HIV-positive, according to the medium-term Work Programme to Operationalise the ASEAN Regional Programme on HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control

HIV has spread at an alarming rate in the region. Some projections show that, if immediate and proper measures and actions are not taken, an explosion of HIV infection will be unavoidable. In 1997, 70,212 AIDS cases in the ASEAN region were reported to the WHO. Due to inaccurate diagnosis of HIV infection and AIDS, incomplete surveillance and delays in reporting, this figure is believed to be a conservative estimate of the actual situation in the region.

It has been estimated that more than one million people in the ASEAN region are HIV-positive, according to the Medium-term Work Programme to Operationalise the ASEAN Regional Programme on HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control.

ASEAN countries have pooled efforts over the years to foster regional cooperation to cope with the rapidly expanding epidemic. HIV/AIDS prevention and control is regularly on the agenda of ASEAN meetings, including summit meetings. Cooperative efforts have been enhanced to strengthen collective response to the problems and challenges posed by HIV/AIDS and member countries have renewed their commitment to turn ASEAN into a region free from diseases including HIV/AIDS. Through collaborative activities, member countries are also striving to build a caring ASEAN community that will help lessen human suffering, including that of those who are living with HIV/AIDS.

Through collaborative activities, member countries are also striving to build a caring ASEAN community that will help lessen human suffering, including that of those who are living with HIV/AIDS

The ASEAN Regional Programme on HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control was endorsed by member countries in October 1995. The programme includes 10 proposed activities for regional implementation. Implementation commenced in 1997.

At the fourth meeting of the ASEAN Task Force on AIDS (ATFOA), the ASEAN Secretariat reported that it had obtained funding support from United Nation programme HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) to draft the work programme to operationalise the ASEAN regional programme, and the terms of reference for a consultant were approved. From July 1997, the consultant visited all member countries and Cambodia to get inputs for the first draft, which was presented for consideration by member countries at the fifth ATFOA Meeting held in December 1997 in Bangkok. An implementation timeframe for the work programme was also agreed upon.

The implementation of the work programme is expected to achieve the following: (i) prevention of HIV transmission, (ii) reduction of morbidity and mortality associated with HIV infection and AIDS, and (iii) sharing of information and experience among member countries.

While the work programme was being finalised, member countries had already agreed to go ahead with a number of projects, either with funding from the UNDP’s ASP-5 Subprogramme on Human Development or on a cost-sharing basis (Table 19). The ASEAN Regional Seminar on Strengthening GO/NGOs/Private Sector/Community Collaboration in AIDS Education, Prevention and Treatment was held in Manila in November 1997. The seminar was in fact a combination of the activities included in the ASEAN Regional Programme on HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control and pertinent activities under the ASP-5 Subprogramme on Human Development.

The regional seminar resulted in the drafting of the document, Guidelines on Strengthening and Enhancing Collaboration in HIV/AIDS Education, Prevention and Care Among Government Organisations, Non-Government Organisations, Private Sector and Communities in the ASEAN Member Countries. This is aimed at mobilising all partners in the prevention and control of the spread of HIV and to provide care for those living with HIV/AIDS. The guidelines were approved at the fifth ATFOA Meeting held in Bangkok in December 1997.

The second output of the seminar was a publication, Report of the Workshop on the Establishment of ASEAN Regional AIDS Information and Research Reference Centre. The workshop was held in Bangkok in December 1997.

The idea of the centre was originally included in the ASEAN Regional Programme on HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control. With technical support from UNAIDS, member countries decided in December 1997 to organise the workshop to consider ways to effectively meet the need for information dissemination in view of the rapid advance of new technologies since the regional programme was formulated. The workshop attracted the attention of a significant number of international organisations and NGOs.

The workshop agreed to establish a computerised network among national AIDS programmes of member countries, with Thailand as the coordinating country. It was also agreed that member countries were to assign a focal point on information sharing and provide contact details to Thailand and to other member countries. Thailand was asked to collate information contributions from the member countries, chair annual review meetings of member countries in order to assess the needs and progress of networking activities, and seek assistance, funding or service that will respond to the needs of member countries.

These decisions were adopted at the fifth ATFOA Meeting, also held in December 1997 in Bangkok. UNAIDS reported at the meeting that the World Bank would provide technical assistance to member countries to support their information capacity building.

In short, member countries have continued to strengthen regional responses to problems and challenges caused by HIV/AIDS , and have made significant headway.

The Resolution on the ASEAN Plan of Action for Children of 1993 recognises the importance of regional cooperation in improving conditions for children in ASEAN, which complement efforts undertaken at the national level. The plan is concerned with the survival, protection and development of the ASEAN child and dovetails with other efforts aimed at generally improving the quality of life of the peoples of ASEAN.

Member countries continue to make progress in implementing the Plan of Action for Children. Over the past year, ASEAN desk officers endorsed a project considered at the regional programme presented at the Workshop on the Establishment of an ASEAN Regional Centre/Network for Family and Child Development held in October 1995 in Kuala Lumpur. This proposal, Juvenile Justice, was prepared by Vietnam for initial appraisal by the ASEAN Cooperation Unit (ACU). Its objectives are to formulate a regional training programme for trainers in the area of protection, care and education of children in the field of juvenile justice and to promote exchanging experiences on the basis of legal documents and programmes of child’s rights protection.

The 20th COSD Meeting endorsed the project proposal Early Child Care and Development for funding consideration (Table 19). This was subsequently endorsed at the first meeting of the 31st ASC, subject to the ACU’s recommendations. The United Nations Children’s Education Fund (UNICEF) has been approached for possible funding assistance. UNICEF has also invited the views and experience of ASEAN in preparing for the Fourth Ministerial Consultation on the Year 2000 Goals for Children scheduled for November 1998.

At the 19th Meeting of the Committee on Social Development (COSD) held in January 1995 in Bangkok, it was agreed that family development is an important topic for COSD to pursue. Malaysia, as the country coordinator of the project, Family Development (Phase IV), was asked to reformulate the project proposal based on inputs to be provided by member countries. The project has four objectives: (i) to provide scientific information and interpret human behaviour in terms of proximate and indirect determinants; (ii) to determine the trends in the structure, composition and status of the family within the context of continuing socioeconomic and demographic development; (iii) to examine the integral dynamics within the family, focusing on the role of all family members for ensuring family stability; and (iv) to identify other factors that determine or influence the status of the family, such as nuptial fertility trends and child mortality. Malaysia is now revising the project proposal, which when ready will be circulated to member countries for comments and initial endorsement.

Another pending project in the area of population is the ASEAN Conference on the Integration of Population and Development Planning, prepared by the Philippines. The project’s former title was Integrating Population and Development Planning in ASEAN. Its three immediate objectives are: (i) to share experiences in the integration of population and development planning among ASEAN countries, (ii) to provide a forum for exchange of information and ideas among policy-makers, researchers and donors in the region regarding new directions and new activities related to population and development, and (iii) to formulate an agenda for future ASEAN collaboration in the fields of population and development.

In the area of family, the COSD has one project, titled Strengthening Families, which was endorsed at the 20th COSD Meeting for funding consideration under the JAEP fund. However, due to funding difficulties, the project is still pending. The first meeting of the 31st ASC recommended that the project be considered in the course of the preparation of the prioritisation guidelines, the action agenda and the outcome of the rationalisation of the JAEP funds.

A major objective for the establishment of ASEAN, as stated in the Bangkok Declaration signed by the ASEAN Foreign Ministers on 8 August 1967, is to "raise the living standards of its peoples". In the Declaration of ASEAN Concord adopted by the ASEAN heads of government in February 1976, the elimination of poverty, hunger, disease and illiteracy were stated as primary concerns for ASEAN cooperation.

At the Inaugural Meeting of ASEAN Ministers on Rural Development and Poverty Eradication in Subang Jaya, Malaysia in October 1997, ASEAN took a big step forward in this direction by creating a regional forum to address ASEAN’s commitment to poverty eradication, specifically, the needs of vulnerable and disadvantaged groups in rural areas.

The meeting was also timely in view of the economic turmoil affecting the region, as member countries look for ways to deal with the human and social impact of the crisis. Although ASEAN as a whole has made important progress in reducing the number of people living below the poverty line during the past two decades of rapid growth, pockets of poverty still exist. In those countries where statistics are available from the 1997 UNDP Human Development Report, the proportion of people living below the national poverty line is about 29%. As Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Dato’ Anwar Ibrahim observed in his keynote address at the inaugural meeting, "The statistics on ASEAN poverty starkly reveal the enormity of the challenge before us and are ... an affront to our dignity."

The statistics point to the importance of further addressing socioeconomic disparities, particularly in rural areas where the incidence of poverty is often higher due to unemployment, underemployment, illiteracy and the lack of basic infrastructure and other necessities. In recognising the enormity of the challenge of reducing socioeconomic disparities, the ministers adopted a vision to eradicate poverty, with particular emphasis on "promoting the development of progressive, prosperous, and self-reliant rural communities, and thus contribute towards creating a caring society in the ASEAN member countries". To realise this vision, the ministers adopted a Framework of the Plan of Action with six priority areas (Table 20).

Since the ASEAN Ministers on Rural Development and Poverty Eradication were meeting for the first time, they recognised the need to put into place a framework for institutionalising ASEAN cooperation on this issue. Accordingly, they signed a Ministerial Understanding on ASEAN Cooperation in Rural Development and Poverty Eradication, with the following key objectives:

Following the ministerial meeting, an experts group meeting was convened in Yogyakarta, Indonesia in December 1997 to develop the Framework of the Plan of Action into implementable priority projects and activities. This meeting was also attended by representatives from the UNDP and the Centre on Integrated Rural Development for Asia and the Pacific (CIRDAP), based in Bangladesh.

The experts group meeting, chaired by Indonesia, agreed that the following projects, based on the priority areas identified by the Framework Plan of Action will be initially developed for implementation in 1998:

The convening of an experts group meeting so soon after the ministerial meeting is an indication of the importance ASEAN member countries place on addressing poverty. Further activities will be developed by the coordinating country for each of these three projects for implementation during 1998. An Informal Meeting of the ASEAN Ministers on Rural Development and Poverty Eradication is scheduled to be held in 1998 in Indonesia to give further momentum to the implementation of the Ministerial Understanding signed in Kuala Lumpur.

The past year has seen the growth of AUN membership to include member universities from ASEAN’s new members Laos and Myanmar. The number of universities participating in the Network has now swelled to 16, with the induction of Yangon University and the Yangon Insititute of Economics, and the National University of the Lao PDR.

The ASEAN University Network held a series of workshops over the past year to develop work plans for the AUN in the priority areas of ASEAN studies, student and faculty exchange, collaborative research and information networking. Funding for these workshops were provided by the UNDP ASP5 under the project, Operationalisation of the AUN Work Programme, together with contributions for organising costs from the host countries.

The AUN Secretariat reported the progress achieved in developing the work plans for the priority areas at the 3rd Meeting of the AUN Board of Trustees held in Hua Hin, Thailand in November 1997. Further developments of these activities were also reported at the 4th Meeting of the AUN Board of Trustees held from in June 1998 in Yangon, Myanmar.

With respect to ASEAN studies, participants at a workshop held in August 1997 in Bangkok agreed that a centre for ASEAN studies, to oversee and facilitate exchanges and also to administer scholarships/fellowships, could be set up at one of the AUN member universities. A welcome development to this was proposed by Universiti Malaya at the 4th AUN Board of Trustees Meeting where an offer was made by the university to provide scholarships for the existing ASEAN Studies Programme at the university, covering 50% of tuition fees and other expenses for two students from each AUN member university. The AUN Board of Trustees have also seen the evolution of the ASEAN Sourcebook on ASEAN Studies from its initial draft to a more comprehensive version, furnished to Member Universities in both book and CD-ROM forms.

Another project encouraging academic exchange among Member Universities is the Student and Faculty Exchange Programme. A workshop convened in Singapore in October 1997 proposed, as two short-term activities, an AUN Educational Forum and the ASEAN Distinguished Professors Programme, with the objective of promoting ASEAN awareness and strengthening the sense of community among AUN scholars. The AUN Educational Forum was held in May 1998 in Bangkok, with Chulalongkorn and Burapha Universities as hosts. Discussions were held on a wide range of topics covering the history, culture, and economics of the ASEAN region. The success of the Forum has prompted the AUN Board of Trustees to advocate that the AUN Educational Forum be held as an annual event, rotated alphabetically among member universities. The Vietnam National university, Hanoi, has offered to be the next host of the AUN Educational Forum. The Distinguished Professors Programme, scheduled to be launched in late 1998, will provide faculty members with the opportunity to travel to other ASEAN countries to deliver lectures or conduct workshops on selected areas, on a cost-sharing basis.

On student exchange, the 4th AUN Board of Trustees Meeting agreed that the existing ASEAN Studies Programme at Universiti Malaya should be used as a pilot mechanism for exchange of students. This is also in keeping with the agreement reached at the Workshop on Staff and Student Exchanges held in Singapore in October 1997, where workshop participants agreed that the longer-term programme on student exchange should initially focus on undergraduate exchanges of at least one semester; and that the programme should start small and be extended gradually.

A third workshop, hosted by Gadjah Mada University in Yogyakarta, Indonesia in November 1997, identified priority areas and guidelines for research collaboration, with a view to enhancing ASEAN studies and regional identity. These areas, which the Board approved at its 3rd Meeting, include environmental management, the impact of trade and investment liberalisation, information technology, tropical diseases, women and family studies. At present, member universities are compiling inventories of ongoing research undertaken in the priority areas, including directories of researchers and campus-based research institutions. Once complete, this information will be incorporated into the ASEAN University Network homepage.

Regarding the enhancement of information networking, the AUN Board, at its 3rd Meeting, viewed a preliminary version of the AUN homepage. Since then, the AUN homepage has found a host at the website of Chulalongkorn University. The further development of the homepage, as well as the networking of libraries and details for other activities under networking leading up to the development of virtual courseware on ASEAN studies will be discussed in a workshop to be convened later in 1998.

Cooperation with university networks beyond the ASEAN region has also achieved considerable progress. At the roundtable on EU-ASEAN cooperation in the field of education and training held in Helsinki, Finland in May 1997, the EU stressed the importance of creating links between universities in ASEAN and EU, and announced its intention to develop, with ASEAN, a programme of university collaboration between the two regions. This proposal was welcomed by the AUN Board since its 2nd Meeting, and ongoing discussions have led to formulation of a draft Financing Agreement, which, once finalised, will be signed by the Chair of the AUN Board of Trustees on behalf of the AUN.

Another issue of significance to AUN member universities raised at the 4th Meeting of the AUN Board was that of university quality assurance. The Board recognised the importance of quality assurance in the respective ASEAN universities, particularly for attainment of the AUN’s goal to strengthen the network with a view to establishing the ASEAN University. The Board agreed to convene the ASEAN Congress on University Quality Assurance in Thailand in 1999, and also to mark the year 1999 as the AUN year of quality education.

At present, the AUN Secretariat is drafting a Work Plan for implementing priority AUN activities into the next millennium.

The 5th AUN Board of Trustees Meeting is scheduled to be held in November 1998, in Hanoi, Vietnam. The AUN also plans to convene a Rectors’ Conference in conjunction with the 5th Board Meeting.

The past year marked continuous efforts by member countries in coping with the scourge caused by drug abuse and illicit drug traffic in the region. ASEAN member countries have made further strides towards achieving the vision that, by 2020, Southeast Asia will be free of illicit drugs, their production, processing, trafficking and use.

The endeavours made by member countries have focused on implementing the directive given by the ASEAN leaders at their Fifth Summit meeting that special emphasis be given to demand-reduction programmes and information exchange and dissemination.

The 20th Meeting of the ASEAN Senior Officials on Drug Matters (ASOD) held in Bandar Seri Begawan in August 1997 made a number of important decisions to boost regional cooperation in dealing with the growing menace caused by drug abuse and illicit trafficking in drugs. Recognising the importance of public awareness, the meeting agreed that once every three years, an award for drug-abuse prevention and control, to be called the ASOD Award, would be given out. There will be two categories, one for individuals and one for organisations. The award for the individual category will consist of a medal, a certificate and US$5,000, while the award for the organisation category will consist of a trophy and a certificate. Recipients of the ASOD Award for both categories will be selected by each member country. The general guidelines for the ASEAN award on drug-abuse prevention and control were adopted at this meeting and subsequently approved by the First Meeting of the 31st ASC.

ASEAN leaders have directed that special emphasis be given to demand-reduction programmes and information exchange and dissemination

Other major decisions made at the meeting included study visits, attachment programmes for ASEAN legal experts to familiarise themselves with the legal systems in the region and exploring the possibility of adopting common procedures in areas such as mutual legal assistance and extradition and inclusion of scientific and technical experts on synthetic drugs and control of precursors in delegations to ASOD meetings to facilitate discussions held during ASOD meetings.

The implementation of the ASEAN Plan of Action on Drug Abuse Control and the ASEAN Work Programme to Operationalise the ASEAN Plan of Action has been accelerated.

A significant step in strengthening regional cooperation against drug abuse and illicit trafficking in narcotics was the development of three flagship projects:

These project proposals were endorsed by the 20th ASOD meeting and subsequently approved at the first meeting of the 31st ASC.

The ASC endorsed the project Promoting Drug Abuse Prevention Activities among Out-of-School Youths under the Work Programme for funding consideration under the ASEAN-EU or ASEAN-Canada dialogues, subject to the submission of a reformulated project proposal including the participation of Laos and Myanmar. The proposed budget for the project was revised for endorsement by member countries before submission to ASEAN-EU or ASEAN-Canada dialogues. The project is thus ready for implementation upon availability of funding.

Another project proposal under the Work Programme, the ASEAN Seminar on Precursor Chemicals, submitted by the Philippines, was endorsed by the fifth meeting of the 30th ASC for funding consideration by Canada. The ASEAN Secretariat has informally approached CIDA/Canada, enquiring about funding consideration and is awaiting a response. If funding from a dialogue partner is not forthcoming, the project will be implemented on a cost-sharing basis, as agreed at the 20th ASOD meeting.

The project Promotion of Drug Control Activities in the Workplace with Brunei Darussalam as the coordinating country was to be implemented in early 1998 on a cost-sharing basis. However, because of the financial crisis in the region, this has been postponed.

Another major achievement in the last year was the successful completion of the ASEAN-EU Three-Year Plan of Action on Preventive Drug Education. This consisted of two elements: (i) Strengthening ASEAN Preventive Drug Information Programme , and (ii) Parent-Youth Movement Against Drug Abuse with the Philippines as project coordinator. The implementation of the Plan of Action on Preventive Drug Education began in 1994 and is scheduled to be completed by June 1998. The participating countries have accomplished all activities included in these two subprojects. To evaluate the outcome and achievements of the implementation of the Plan of Action and to prepare a final report which will be submitted to the EC and the ASOD, a monitoring team visited all participating countries during April and May 1998 to evaluate the achievements. Findings after the visits by the monitoring team indicate that the plan of action has been successfully implemented, producing a strong impact on national preventive drug-education programmes.

The illicit trade in drugs respects no national boundaries. Hence, regional and international cooperation plays a crucial role in curbing the drug trade

Another project under the ASEAN-EU cooperation programme, ASEAN Training Courses for Drug Rehabilitation Professionals, coordinated by Malaysia, was also fruitfully completed. This project consists of five phases. Two courses were conducted in June and July 1997 at the National University of Malaysia. This project replaced the proposed ASEAN Training Seminar for Drug Treatment and Rehabilitation Counsellors in the Work Programme to Operationalise the ASEAN Plan of Action on Drug Abuse Control.

To further strengthen regional cooperation, member countries have agreed to implement non-project activities, focusing on exchanging information on the evaluation of treatment and rehabilitation and effective after-care approaches for reducing relapses - such as Naltrexone treatment-the control of precursors, and efforts to promote adherence to the 1988 UN Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances.

Cooperation with international and regional organisations and other countries

The illicit trade in drugs respects no national boundaries. Hence, regional and international cooperation plays a crucial role in curbing the drug trade. Over the past year such cooperation has been increasingly strengthened, particularly with the UNDCP and Interpol. Participants at the 20th ASOD Meeting agreed to continue inviting Cambodia, Papua New Guinea, Colombo Plan, Foreign Anti - Narcotics Community (FANC), Interpol, the UnitedNations Drug Control Programme (UNDCP) and ASEAN to the 21st ASOD Meeting scheduled to be held in March/April 1999 in Indonesia as observers.

In general, cooperation on drug matters between ASEAN and the EU has made good progress. However, there has been some delay in the functioning of the proposed Subcommittee on Narcotics because of the absence of a response from the EU to the counterproposal on the draft guidelines for the subcommittee and because the dates for the first meeting have not been finalised.

At the Inaugural Meeting of the ASEAN-Pakistan Sectoral Dialogue Relations held in Islamabad in November 1997, participants agreed that programmes of cooperation between ASEAN and Pakistan should include drugs and narcotics control. Pakistan has proposed a number of areas, to which ASEAN member countries have responded positively.

The momentum of ASEAN regional cooperation against drug abuse and illicit drug trafficking has definitely been strengthened.