The ASEAN Award will give recognition to individuals and organisations for their contribution to the promotion and development of regional cooperation aimed at sharing prosperity

The ASEAN Award will be launched to give recognition to individuals and organisations for outstanding work and contribution towards the promotion and development of regional cooperation aimed at sharing prosperity through human development, technological competitiveness and social cohesiveness. The Award for the individual category consists of a medal, a certificate and US$20,000 while that for the organisation category consists of a trophy, a certificate and a grant of up to US$200,000 for a study, project, research or activity to be undertaken by the organisation. Both will be given every three years during the meeting of the ASEAN Heads of Government, starting with the ASEAN Summit scheduled to be held in Vietnam in 1998.

To promote greater ASEAN awareness among the peoples of ASEAN and widen participation in ASEAN activities, Member Countries agreed to establish the ASEAN Foundation as a partnership between the ASEAN Governments and the private sector. Funding for the ASEAN Foundation would come from Member Countries, Dialogue Partners, private corporations and other foundations or individuals.

Science and Technology

The Medium Term Programme for ASEAN Science and Technology Development (1996-2000), with its focus on human resources development, technology transfer and commercialisation and networking of centres of excellence, continued to guide the ASEAN Committee on Science and Technology (COST) in its efforts towards technological competitiveness.

Sixty projects including both training and research and development, were implemented by COST during the past year, covering the field of food science and technology, meteorology and geophysics, microelectronics and information technology, materials science, biotechnology, non-conventional energy, marine science and science and technology (S&T) infrastructure and resources development. Thirteen projects were completed, twelve were on-going and the rest were in various stages of development.

Several cost-sharing projects were developed, including the ASEAN S&T Information Network (ASTNET) and the ASEAN S&T Fellowship Programme, to signal ASEAN's thrust towards strengthening science and technology capabilities by building on national strength and sharing available resources. Thirteen training courses were also held in areas such as food science and technology, meteorology and geophysics, and science and technology infrastructure and resources development. Efforts have also been made to further boost the development of human resources.

The First ASEAN State of the Environment Report describes environmental conditions and trends in the region and analyses the interaction between natural and human ecosystems which provoke national and regional responses and generate policies for action programmes

Recognising the importance of a supportive science policy environment and skillful technology management, COST, with the assistance of the ASEAN Secretariat developed the ASEAN S&T Management Information System (ASTMIS), a databank of science and technology indicators. The provision of information services for business, as well as the promotion of private sector linkages and participation in technology development projects, were successfully pursued in the area of non-conventional energy, particularly in solar energy and biomass. These projects demonstrated the benefits of combining business and technical expertise in upgrading technology capabilities of small enterprise, to gear them up for global competitiveness. The concerns for sustainable science and technology development in ASEAN were also addressed by the upgrading of expertise in and application of remote sensing technology for natural resources management and environmental monitoring.

Environment

In line with the Framework for Elevating Functional Cooperation to a Higher Plane, and recognising that increased public awareness and participation were essential for the success of environmental policies, the ASEAN Senior Officials on the Environment (ASOEN) identified the ASEAN Environment Year and the ASEAN Environment Award as flagship projects. The ASEAN Ministers for the Environment also agreed to establish the ASEAN Regional Centre for Biodiversity Conservation as a flagship project to underscore the need to protect the region's biological diversity and to promote the sustainable use of natural resources. During the year in review, ASOEN coordinated or implemented 40 projects in nature conservation, marine environment, transboundary pollution, environmental management, environmental economics, and environmental education. Four projects were completed, nine were on-going and twenty-seven were in the pipeline. Among these projects was the First ASEAN State of the Environment Report describing environmental conditions and trends in the region and analysing the interactions between natural and human ecosystems which provoke national and regional responses and generate policies which guide action programmes. As part of its continuing effort to address the issue of the linkages between environment and trade, ASOEN adopted a set of guidelines and recommendations for the development of ASEAN policies on the environment-trade nexus. Among these recommendations were: greater transparency and non-discrimination of ecolabelling schemes; wider adoption of the Polluters Pay Principle (PPP); support for the principle of Prior Informed Consent (PIC) and the development of a region-wide database and centre for promoting environmentally sustainable technology.

Culture and Information

For the ASEAN Committee on Culture and Information (COCI) the year in review was the final year of its first Three-Year Plan of Action. The Plan incorporated projects that sought to preserve and promote the cultural and artistic heritage of ASEAN, increase ASEAN awareness and consciousness and foster artistic creativity in a dynamic environment. A total of twenty-three projects were implemented, eleven in culture and twelve in information, with a total funding of US$2.6 million from the ASEAN Cultural Fund.

The ASEAN Committee on Culture and Information seeks to preserve and promote the cultural and artistic heritage of ASEAN.

The projects, ASEAN in Action and Television Coverage and Promotion of ASEAN and its Activities were sustained with an almost daily broadcast of news and information about ASEAN over national radio and television in Member Countries in order to raise awareness of ASEAN among the peoples of the region. As part of the continuing effort to harness appropriate modes and technologies in media communications, a technical meeting on the proposed ASEAN Satellite Channel was convened and a study was initiated for the expansion of the ASEANWEB on the Internet to include homepages for culture and information.

To give greater publicity and raise the public profile of functional cooperation activities, the ASEAN Secretariat started publishing a newsletter called Interface, with the funding support of the ASEAN Cultural Fund. COCI also extended financial support and technical advice to the ASEAN Secretariat in the production of a documentary video, ASEAN at 30, to be shown on national television in the Member Countries in commemoration of ASEAN's 30th anniversary.

Social Development

The directives of the Fifth Summit continued to guide the projects and activities implemented by the subsidiary bodies of the Committee on Social Development (COSD), particularly those relating to human resources development, poverty alleviation and the strengthening of the family. A total of fifty-five projects came under the purview of COSD during the past year. Six projects were completed, eight were on-going and forty-one were in various stages of preparation.

Human resources development was boosted with the operationalisation of the ASEAN University Network (AUN) and the agreement to establish an ASEAN Occupational Safety and Health Network (ASEAN OSHNET)

The priority given to human resources received a major boost with the formal operation of the ASEAN University Network (AUN) and the establishment of the AUN Secretariat in Thailand and secondly, with the agreement to establish the ASEAN Occupational Safety and Health Network (ASEAN OSHNET) among the Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) centres in ASEAN Member Countries. The Year also saw the implementation of projects targeted at reducing poverty and improving access to social services. A project to improve women's access to skills training and employment opportunities was implemented by the ASEAN Sub-committee on Women.

In the labour sector, projects were undertaken, with funding from UNDP, to assess training needs for the development of the informal sector in ASEAN and on the feasibility of establishing a regional institute for human resources development planning. In the youth sector, projects to promote youth entrepreneurship and encourage youth involvement in tourism were implemented.

In responding to the call for strengthening the family as a foundation for a caring and cohesive society, the COSD subsidiary bodies developed projects to promote community support for enhancing the family's capacity to care for children and to study the feasibility of establishing a computer-based information network for child and family development. The ASEAN Subcommittee on Youth approved a project to explore the role of youth in fostering sound family values. With respect to the welfare of the elderly, a regional meeting will be held in August 1997 to look into successful models of community-based care for elderly persons in the ASEAN region.

Three projects on legislation for the protection of children, child abuse and early childhood care were developed and endorsed by the COSD as part of a larger effort to enhance regional cooperation for the survival, protection and development of children as called for by the Fifth Summit.

These initiatives aimed to train competent childcare providers, promote responsible parenthood and family development and improve the effectiveness of legislation pertaining to the child in the region.

Finally, in the health sector, the ASEAN Subcommittee on Health and Nutrition signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the World Health Organisation (WHO) for collaboration in a number of areas, including the prevention and control of communicable diseases and new,emerging and re-emerging diseases. UNAIDS also offered to assist in the implementation of the ASEAN Regional Programme on HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control.

Drugs and Narcotics Control

The implementation of the Medium Term Programme on ASEAN Drug Abuse Control (1996-1998) continued to make good progress with special emphasis given to demand reduction programmes and information exchange and dissemination. In view of the decline in funding from Dialogue Partners, a number of projects were implemented on a cost-sharing basis, including the training of trainers in interpersonal skills and peer counseling and training on financial investigations.

In line with the Framework for Elevating Functional Cooperation to a Higher Plane, the ASEAN Senior Officials on Drug Matters (ASOD) agreed to develop the following as flagship projects: Kid Listo - Youth Empowerment Against Drugs and Substance Abuse, Training on Intelligence Operations Management and Supervision and Enhancement of Community-based Drug Prevention Activities.