In recent years horticulture crops have become increasingly important in Asia and the Pacific. There is a growing demand for these crops, particularly vegetables and fruits, which brought about increasing income and changes in food consumption pattern. Current horticulture production, however, still suffers considerably from post-harvest problem due to losses and quality deterioration during storage and shipment. According to some estimates, post-harvest losses of up to 30 percent are being experienced in many countries.

To discuss recent development in technologies aimed improving the efficiency of post-harvest operation in horticulture production; the APO organized the seminar on Appropriate Post-harvest Technologies for Horticultural Crops in Bangkok from 5 to9 July 1999. This publication is a compilation of the papers and proceedings of that seminar. I hope that it will prove useful for agencies and individual practitioners concerned with post-harvest issues in Asia and Pacific.

Coastal fishery management aims at enhancing the landing of quality fish on a sustainable basis and improving the socio-economic well-being of coastal fishery communities, especially women. Despite tremendous increases in fish landings in Asia that have contributed in part to the economic growth of the region during the past three decades, the livelihood of fishing communities has not improved propor­tionately due to the seasonal nature of fishing and involvement of middlemen, among others. Coastal fisheries are also confronting problems of over-exploitation of resources, fishing conflicts among fisher people, and habitat and environmental degradation that by and large originate from the open access nature of the fisheries.

It is inevitable that the above and other diverse problems confronted by coastal fisheries must be tackled in plans for their integrated development. Such an inte­grated approach should focus on, among others, enhancing incomes of fisher people and their families by developing non-fishing enterprises, capacity building of fishing families coupled with the provision of supporting infrastructure such as credit and marketing facilities, and measures to improve fishing technologies in consultation with fisher people. In addition, more effective policies and programs are needed to ensure sustainable fish landings and prosperity of coastal fishery communities.

To assess recent developments in coastal fishery management and to discuss integrated approaches to improve the socio-economic well-being of coastal fishery communities in the Asia-Pacific region, the Asian Productivity Organization (APO) organized the Seminar on Coastal Fisheries Management in Colombo, Sri Lanka, from 2 to 7 October 2000. This publication is a report on the proceedings of the seminar. It also incorporates the resource papers and country papers presented at the meeting. I hope that it will be a useful reference text for all those who are in­volved with coastal fisheries management in the Asia-Pacific region.

In recent yeas, much concern has emerged about the widespread utilization of chemical pesticides which have caused adverse impact on the environment, health and food safety. To cope with the situation, in many member countries of the APO, government and responsible organization have made tremendous efforts to apply integrated pest Management (IPM) as a safer and more eco-friendly means of combating plant pests and diseases. There have been successful cases in this regard, but such endeavors have been still considered insufficient. For the future, it is expected that more concrete measure will have to be put into place to promote farmer-centered approaches of IPM.

To review and asses the present situation of implementing IPM program in member countries, an APO seminar on Integrated Pest Management (IPM) was held in April, 1998 in Thailand. This is the 2^nd occasion for the APO to implement a program on IPM as an important area related to the management of agriculture policies in the respective member countries. This volume contains the papers and proceedings of the seminar.

As a result of significant improvement in the income levels and life styles, consumers worldwide have increasingly demanded better quality and safer food in recent years. Accordingly, many countries have taken measures to enhance their food standard and labeling systems since they are important not only in improving food quality but also in ensuring the quality of food.

To review the current food standard and food labeling systems in member countries and suggest measures of enhancing their effectiveness and contribution to the development of the food industry in those countries the Asian Productivity (APO) organized the seminar on Food Standard and Food Labeling Systems in Tokyo form 4 to 11 April 2001.

This publication is a compilation of the papers and proceedings of the seminar. I hope that it will serve as useful reference on the subject for APO member Countries.

In most Asian developing countries, efforts towards proper management of hazardous wastes are only at the primitive stage. In fact, this is a new subject in almost all developing countries. Hazardous wastes may be generated from activities of industries, agriculture, construction, hospital and clinics, as well as from their improper handling and disposal. These wastes may be in the form of solid, liquid, or gaseous materials, which, if improperly managed, pose substantial threats or potential hazards to human health and the environment.

There is a need for the government, private companies, workers, environmentalists, and international organizations to work together to promote mutual understanding on this important subject of environmental protection, in particular, the permanent damages that hazardous wastes could cause to human health and the environment. It is necessary to have thorough understanding of proper techniques for minimizing the generation of these wastes, as well as their collection, storage, transport, treatment, and disposal.

This publication is emanated from an APO survey undertaken in 2000 to study the current situation of member countries in hazardous waste management, and to gain information on prevailing technologies and practices on managing hazardous wastes, as well as their reuse and recycling. A total of eight member countries participated in this survey. Action plans and measures to minimize adverse impacts of hazardous wastes were also formulated. These have been incorporated in the national and integrated reports contained in this publication.

Agriculture continues to playa pivotal role in ensuring food security and the prosperity of rural life in the region. In many Asian countries, however, certain inappropriate agricultural practices are rapidly deteriorating the agricultural resource base and environment. Some of the practices posing serious challenges to environmental sustainability are intensive farming due to a rapid decline in the arable land area, large-scale deforestation to expand arable farming areas, mismanagement of water, ecologically fragile uplands and marginal lands in plains, and the improper use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides. Such agricultural practices lead in turn to the degradation of the agricultural resource base and environmental problems such as land degradation, siltation of water reservoirs, water pollution, loss of biodiversity, health hazards, etc.

This situation demands the immediate attention of all stakeholders to develop appropriate strategies to mitigate the adverse effects of agricultural practices on the agricultural resource base and thereby ensure environmental sustainability. To address this issue, the APO organized the Seminar on the Impact of Agricultural Practices on Environmental Sustainability, which was held in Japan in September 2000. This publication is a report on the proceedings of the seminar as well as on the resource papers and country papers presented. I hope that it will serve as a useful reference text for all those interested in agriculture and environmental sustainability relationships in the Asia-Pacific region.

I It is estimated that by the year 2025, Asia will be the home to around 600 million elderly people. The vast majority of them will be found in the rural sector, where social and healthcare facilities for them are usually given low priority. The breakdown of the extended family system in the region, the result of changing values and lifestyles, has led to a sense of isolation, insecurity and worthlessness among the rural elderly. To help them out of this difficult situation, several countries have endeavored to optimize the benefits provided to the rural elderly from the public expenditure devoted to their welfare. As many of them are still active and healthy, programs have been introduced to enable them to participate in "agricultural activities with the younger generations. The experiences of these countries are invaluable to others seeking to undertake similar programs, and for the mobilization of public support for the welfare of the rural elderly.

To facilitate the sharing of experiences in catering to the needs of the rural elderly among APO member countries, the APO sponsored the Seminar on Improvement Program for the Rural Elderly. It was held in Japan, one of the few countries with excellent elderly care programs, from 30 June to 8 July 1999.

This publication is a report on the proceedings of the seminar, and a compilation of the resource papers and country papers presented in the meeting. I hope it will be a useful reference text for all those concerned with the socio-economic welfare of the rural elderly in the region.

Food security is a major global concern today as testified by the World Food Summit (WFS) in Rome in 1996. This is because problems of hunger and malnutrition continue to persist in many parts of the world. Although the introduction of modem agricultural technology in the 1960s brought about significant increase in farm productivity in many Asian countries, these gains have been largely nullified by high population growth and loss of production opportunities brought about by erosion of biodiversity, soil degradation, unfavorable climate, and indiscriminate conversion of prime agricultural lands to other uses. One promising solution, as advocated by the WFS, is international trade. It enhances food security by enabling countries experiencing food shortages to augment their own production with imported food, thereby contributing to the stabilization of domestic food supplies and prices. To fully benefit from trade, however, some fundamental and/or outstanding issues need to be resolved, such as:

1) ensuring access to dependable and efficient sources of food supply

2) enabling countries to have an expanding market for their exports

3) distributing equitably the gains from trade so that the poor get their fair share

4) protecting the poor from possible adverse effects resulting from trade liberalization.

To discuss recent developments in agricultural trade, and to assess their possible impacts on the food security situation in the Asia and the Pacific, the APO held a Seminar on International Trade and Food Security in Tokyo in January/February 1999. This publication is a report of the proceedings of the seminar, and a compilation of the papers presented. I hope it will make a meaningful contribution to the ongoing discussions on trade and food security.

Total factor productivity (TFP) is increasingly becoming the focus of development policy and strategy in many countries to sustain the high level of growth achieved in the Asia and the Pacific region over the last two decades. Globalization and the experience of

the Asian economic crisis have made it even more critical on the need of improving TFP to accelerate and sustain growth in the region. Productivity increase can no longer rely on a mere expansion of employment and capital investments. Qualitative improvements in human resources and capital coupled with effectiveness with which resources work together, play critical role in raising higher TFP. Among others, infrastructure development, small industry development, product design capability, technology advancements, management capability, structural adjustments, and human resource development were identified as the factors influencing TFP. It is in this context that the measurement of TFP has generated strong interest among decision-makers in formulating effective policies and strategies.

Against this background, the APO initiated a survey in 1998 to estimate and compare TFP based upon an agreed methodology in selected member countries. The ultimate aim was to promote mutual learning among member countries on policies and actions to improve TFP and identify the "best practice" adopted. The findings were discussed at the follow-up symposium organized subsequently in Singapore in October

1999. This publication contains the national survey reports and findings as well as selected country reports presented at the symposium. We hope this publication will prove useful to all those who are keen to explore the relationship between productivity, economic growth and competitive strength and to government officials who are responsible for devising effective national policies and strategies to achieve higher economic growth.

The significant achievements in Asian agriculture during the past decades have been attributed in large part to the Green Revolution that occurred in the region in the 1960s and 1970s. The Green Revolution resulted in marked increases in yields which were brought about not only by the widespread use of new high-yielding varieties, mainly of rice and wheat, but also by the adoption of those varieties in conjunction with a comprehensive package of additional inputs which included fertilizers, pesticides, and adequate irrigation. Irrigation thus played a major role in the endeavors of developing countries to meet the food requirements of their growing populations.

The improvement of irrigation efficiency to sustain food production efforts became an overriding concern as water resources became increasingly scarce and costly. Large irrigation systems constructed by the public sector were often poorly managed. It was in this context that a more participatory approach to irrigation management was introduced in the 1970s and 1980s. Since then, the varied experiences of a number of developing countries have shown that participatory irrigation management generally contributes to reduce costs to government, better management, greater accountability, and improved sustainability of operations. Such benefits, however, can be gained only by ensuring that the shift to a participatory type of management is properly planned and managed. This requires all stakeholders to participate in, support, and commit to implementing the change on time and within the planned resource budget.

To assess recent developments in the implementation of participatory irrigation management in APO member countries and to discuss ways of more effectively managing the change to that type of management, the APO organized a Seminar on Organizational Change for Participatory Irrigation Management in October 2000 in the Philippines. This volume is a compilation of the papers and proceedings of the seminar. I hope that it will serve as a useful reference on the subject in APO member countries

Sugar is a major traditional export of many countries in Asia and the Pacific. As one of the most internationally traded commodities, it is an important source of revenue for the sugar exporting countries. Sugar has many uses, in households, medicine and industry. Its consumption is projected to further increase in the future, particularly in major consumer countries like India and China. This is due to rising standards of living, population growth, and expanding demand for sugar-containing products like soft drinks and processed foods.

Sugar demand will also be driven by researches that are finding new users for it, especially as a base for industrial materials. Recent developments, however, such as the growing liberalization of agricultural trade and the increasing competition being provided by artificial sweeteners, are undermining the profitability of the industry. Hence, there is a need to search for ways to enhance the productivity of the industry, particularly through improved production technologies and management practices.

To assess the problems and constraints facing sugar cane plantations in member countries, and to identify measures for improving their productivity in the light of changing conditions in world trade and in the domestic uses of the commodity, the APO organized a Seminar on Productivity Improvement in Sugar Cane Plantations in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, on 7-12 December 1998. This publication is a report on the proceedings of the seminar and a compilation of the papers presented. It is my hope that it will serve as a useful reference text for APO member countries and others with an extensive sugar cane industry.

Asia is one of the most important regions for the production and consumption offish. Fish provides a good proportion of animal protein to a large segment of the people in the region. It is also an important source of employment and household income to a large rural population. In addition, the export offish and fishery products is a source of valuable foreign exchange for many APO member countries.

To cope with increasing demand, the supply of fish has increased dramatically in recent years. Further demand for fish and fishery products in the future, however, will require that the processing of fish be given due consideration in producing a wide range of value-added products. Thus, fish processing will become an increasingly important industry. Its expansion will be determined mainly by the ability to ensure the quality and safety of processed fishery products. Accordingly, the adoption of quality control measures in all post harvest operations is indispensable. For member countries enjoying a high share of the export market, improving quality control in fish processing would enhance their competitiveness in the era of trade liberalization under the WTO regime.

In view of the above situation, the Asian Productivity Organization organized a Seminar on Quality Control in Fish Processing from 14 to 22 April 1999 in Japan to improve capabilities in various aspects of quality control in fish processing in member countries. This volume is a compilation of papers presented at the seminar. I hope that this publication will be useful for those who are concerned with fisheries management, particularly quality control in fish processing.

In recent agricultural policy debates, one of the more common buzzwords is multifunctionality, a concept which highlights the notion that agriculture plays many roles in our society in addition to its traditional primary function of producing food and fiber. These so-called "non-food functions" of agriculture include protecting the environment, activating the rural economy and ensuring food security, among others. This multifunctionality in agriculture provides another important justification for the world's increasing concern with sustainable development. Muitifunctionality has also been tied to on-going deliberations at the WTO where it is used to justify the continued provision of subsidies to the agriculture sector -- an issue that has polarized the world since the Uruguay Round negotiations.

In a broad sense, therefore, the concept of multifunctionality is maintaining that as agricultural activities bring social, economic, political and environmental benefits to society, they should be given due consideration in policy and program formulation. Agriculture, for instance, may produce non-food effects such as the enhancement of rural landscape or the preservation of bio-diversity. These effects should be taken into account in the overall assessment of the importance of agriculture, and not just focus on its direct benefit of food production. More research is required to operationalize the multifunctionality concept. For example, there is a need to identify clearly what the non-food functions are as they could differ from one country to another or from one geographic region to another. A more formidable task perhaps is the measurement of the benefits of the non-food agricultural output.

To facilitate an in-depth analytical study of the multifunctional character of agriculture, including its economic and social implications, the APO organized a seminar on the Role of Multifunctionality in Agricultural Policy Reforms in Japan in January/February 2000. This publication is a record of the seminar proceedings and a compilation of the papers presented in the meeting. I hope it will be a useful reference text for policy

Women comprise the majority of the world's agricultural producers and providers of food. Nearly all of them are also responsible for food preparation for their families. These important contributions unfortunately go largely unnoticed due to the fact that most of the agricultural work done by women is unpaid and is not measured in surveys and statistics. Rural women also continue to produce food under severe constraints as a result of gender ­insensitive policies and programs, cultural traditions, and legal provisions. These constraints have limited the access of rural women to production resources such as land, credit, agricultural inputs, and technology that are vital to increase food production in developing countries.

The mainstreaming of gender concerns in planning and policy-making remains a critical concern in achieving sustainable food security. Specifically, special policies are needed to empower women in their role as producers and providers of food., For example, measures that facilitate their access to resources, as well as to more gender-focused educational and training opportunities, would enable more effective mobilization of the efforts of rural women to raise productivity and, consequently, to improve the food security of the country.

To assess the role of rural women in food security and to suggest measures for enhancing their capacity to become more efficient producers and providers of food, the Asian Productivity Organization organized a Seminar on the Role of Rural Women in Food Security in Thailand from 21 to 25 August 2000. This publication is a compilation of the papers and proceedings of the seminar. I hope that it will serve as a useful reference for students and practitioners of rural development.

Rural development has been often a synonym for the development of physical infrastructure in rural area. However, recent rural development programs have emphasized the need of social and human capital development and environmental conservation. They also call for increasing participation of local people and communities.

To discusses the issue at the interface of rural development and environmental conservation and suggest policy measures to resolve them, the APO organized the seminar on “Rural Development and Environmental Conservation” that was hosted by Nepal in 2001.

This publication is a compilation of the papers and proceedings of that seminar. It is our hope that it will prove useful for our readers, especially policies makers, planner and managers involved in rural development in Asia-Pacific region.

The fisheries sector plays an important role in the economy and food security of many APO member countries. In the past few decades, global landings from fisheries have increased dramatically, partly due to enhanced fishing activity to cope with the increasing demand for fish and fishery products, and partly to improvements in harvesting technology. Overfishing has been reported by many nations. There is a continuing decline in many commercially important fish stocks due to environment-unfriendly fishing techniques. In addition, indiscriminate expansion of various development activities has been damaging the coastal and marine habitats that provide breeding and rearing grounds for fish. Thus it is imperative to adopt environmentally friendly fishing practices for the sustainability of fishery resources in the region.

Sustainable fishery management may incorporate self-regulated measures in fishing and controls on fishing methods to avoid unwanted by-catches and undesirable effects on the environment. New technologies such as satellite surveillance of fishing vessels can help monitor and regulate fishing activities. For this purpose, an efficient organizational set-up and policy management would be required.

Against this background, the Asian Productivity Organization organized a Study Meeting on Sustainable Fishery Management from 13 to 21 Octoberl999 in Japan to discuss important issues in sustainable fishery management and to share lessons and experiences in long-term sustainable development of the fishery industry in the region. This volume is a compilation of papers/reports presented at the study meeting. I hope that this publication will be useful for all those who are concerned with fishery management.

Urban fringe agriculture has recently become an important policy concern, particularly in the light of repaid growth of cities and other urban centers in many parts of Asia and the consequent need to feed the growing population in these areas. 

Urban fringe or peri-urban agriculture involves farming near or around cities and towns with the use of intensive methods to produce mainly vegetables and other horticultural and live stock products on a semi- or full commercial basis.

To discusses the present situation of urban fringe agriculture in Asia and the pacific, identify issues and constraints affecting its development, and suggest measure for enhancing its contribution to the economy, the APO organized a seminar on Urban fringe Agriculture (Category B”) in May 2000 in Japan. This volume is a compilation of the papers and the proceeding of the seminar. APO hopes that it will serve as a useful reference on the subject in member countries.

Water plays a critical role in agricultural production. It is estimated that over 80 percent of all available water supplies in Asia is used for irrigation. However, the efficiency of this usage is far from satisfactory. There is also the increasing concern over the growing scarcity of water. In addition to this, the rapidly developing urban and industrial sectors are demanding for more water. In this competition for allocation of water, the agriculture sector is in a weaker position as prior consideration is likely to be given to the other sectors on the basis of economic efficiency and social profitability. In this context, it is of paramount importance that water use efficiency in irrigation should be greatly improved to sustain crop production and to justify more water allocation for agriculture.

Water use productivity could increase if appropriate measures are undertaken to revise obsolete and unrealistic policies, improve technologies, and reform ineffective institutions and outdated management systems. For example, a more realistic policy for pricing of water is necessary to ensure its optimal use. Improvement in water management and the greater use of less water-consuming crop varieties will also help enhance the productive use of water. And more effective institutions are needed to better coordinate the proper use of all water resources.

To address these and other important issues relating to better water use in irrigation, the APO organized the Seminar on Water Use Efficiency in Irrigation in the Republic of China in November 1999. This publication is a record of the proceedings of the seminar. It also includes the papers of the resource speakers and the country reports of the participants. It is my hope that this publication will prove useful to all those with responsibility for irrigation management in the region.