Launch of APO Book on Asia-Pacific Productivity Data and Analysis
11 January 2002, Foreign Correspondents' Club, Tokyo
At the Press Conference
Enhancing productivity has been adopted by a large
group of Asia-Pacific countries as a key strategy
for their socio-economic development and for improving
the quality of life of their people. The Asian Productivity
Organization (APO) was established in Tokyo in 1961
as a regional governmental organization to promote
mutual cooperation among member countries in this
important area, particularly in helping to develop
each other's human resources. APO membership has increased
to 18 since then.
Over the last 40 years, much has been done by APO
member countries to promote and increase productivity.
This inevitably leads to expectations for some clearer
evidence of the contributions of productivity to the
socio-economic development. Moreover, national policymakers,
corporate executives, and workers in Asia and the
Pacific have often wished they could find productivity
data and its analysis for the region in a single,
authoritative source. In the belief that it should
be a duty of the APO to meet these needs and expectations
the APO appointed a group of national experts from
16 of its member countries at the end of year 2000
to work out a methodology and framework for collecting
their national productivity data, identify the indicators
to be included in the study, and set guidelines for
the analysis report to be prepared by each of the
experts.
After a year of intensive data collection, review,
updating and analysis, the APO is proud to announce
the first publication and release of the book entitled
APO Asia-Pacific Productivity Data and Analysis. A
press conference was organized on Friday, 11 January
2002 at the Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan
in Tokyo to introduce the book to the press and the
concerned people.
During the press conference Mr. Takashi Tajima, the
APO Secretary-General, made introductory remarks and
the chief expert of the productivity data and analysis
study, Dr. David Owyong, Ph.D., conducted a presentation
on the significance, scope and results of the study,
and usefulness of the publication to policymakers,
business executives, workers and productivity specialists.
The press conference was attended by leading Japanese
press including the Asahi Shimbun, Mainichi Shimbun.,
Nikkei Shimbun, International Development Journal,
and JPC-SED News. The press conference was also attended
by the representatives of diplomatic missions and
press of various APO member countries including Bangladesh,
Fiji, Iran and Sri Lanka.
The publication is priced at US$29. Please click here to order the book.
