43rd WORKSHOP MEETING OF HEADS OF NPOs
18-20 February 2003, Manila, Philippines
Statement of APO Secretary-General Mr. Takashi Tajima
I would like
to take this opportunity to extend a very warm welcome
to all delegates, advisers, and observers to the 43rd
Workshop Meeting of Heads of NPOs organized in Manila,
the Philippines. On behalf of the Asian Productivity
Organization, I would like to express my sincere gratitude
to the Government of the Philippines for its generous
support and cooperation in hosting this meeting. I
would also like to commend the Development Academy
of the Philippines, in particular, Dr. Gonzalez and
Dr. Romero and their able staff, for the excellent
coordination and arrangements made for this meeting.
In all our endeavors for productivity improvement,
our ultimate objective is the realization of a better
quality of life for all. Michael Porter once mentioned
that "A nation's standard of living is determined
by the productivity with which it uses its human,
capital, and natural resources. The appropriate definition
of competitiveness is productivity." In my view,
however, competitiveness reflects only one dimension
of productivity as it should be complemented by other
critical factors such as environmental protection
and social fairness. Thus strengthening competitiveness,
maintaining harmony between productivity and the environment,
and responding to social fairness should constitute
the three pillars of the present productivity movement.
They are mutually reinforcing to achieve the ultimate
objective of the productivity movement, that is, a
better quality of life for all. These three pillars
were presented when we celebrated the APO's 40th anniversary
in 2001. Since then, APO activities have been designed
taking these pillars of productivity into account,
including the Two-Year Plan, which we will present
in a subsequent session. Let me now present the salient
features of our activities.
The major components of corporate assets have been
shifting from tangible to intangible ones. Until the
1970s, such corporate assets as money, buildings,
machinery, and equipment were considered more important
in running a business than intangible assets such
as knowledge, experience, ideas, and know-how. The
scenario for strengthening competitiveness has reversed
since the late 1980s, suggesting the emerging importance
of knowledge as a productive asset to business corporations.
New products and services can be derived on the basis
of creative and innovative ideas and knowledge possessed
by workers. Realizing that knowledge is a key source
of competitive advantage, governments and organizations
alike have accorded top priority to knowledge generation
and application. The Republic of China serves as a
good illustration as the government has sought to
establish a nationwide knowledge management infrastructure.
The APO has already designated knowledge management
as one of its thrust areas. The main focus has now
shifted from the introduction of the theory and concepts
of knowledge management to its actual application
at enterprise level. Furthermore, strengthening of
the capabilities of NPOs to propagate knowledge management
among their client organizations is part and parcel
of our major concerns. A shining example is the Vietnam
Productivity Center (VPC). The VPC received technical
assistance under the DON program in early last year
and in less than one year has developed sufficient
capabilities to render expert services on knowledge
management to its client enterprises.
A creative and innovative mind is a hallmark of
small entrepreneurs. Their mindset, driven by the
economies of speed and networking that now appear
to govern the business world, has put them on an equal
footing vis-a-vis large enterprises when competing
in global markets. In part, our program on SMEs has
been directed at nurturing and strengthening the spirit
of small entrepreneurs. The Asian Venture Forum, which
has been organized annually in Osaka, Japan, since
2000 with financial support from the Japanese government,
is a case in point. The forum has provided opportunities
for small entrepreneurs in the Asia-Pacific region
to develop cross-border strategic alliances in technology
and marketing. A follow-up survey revealed that as
many as 62 alliances had been forged over the first
two years.
Strong SMEs have built up their core competence
on their own initiative and can be expected to grow
further. On the other hand, we need to recognize the
hard reality that a majority of SMEs remains vulnerable
as they feel themselves under serious pressure from
the changing environment. Previously we have offered
a host of projects to strengthen SMEs in general,
but in coming years we need to embark on activities
catering to the specific needs and priorities of weak
SMEs.
The achievements and success of the APO Green Productivity
(GP) program since the First World Conference on GP
in 1996 reached greater heights with our historic
participation in the World Summit on Sustainable Development
(WSSD) in Johannesburg, South Africa, and the organization
of the Second World Conference on GP in Manila, the
Philippines, both held last year. Participation in
the WSSD gave the APO an invaluable opportunity to
share its vision and achievements with a global audience.
I am glad to inform you that the APO proposal for
a partnership initiative on GP-ICD projects in the
Asian region was included in the official WSSD documents.
As a follow-up to the WSSD, the Second World Conference
on GP was organized to undertake a critical review
of the progress of the GP program and determine future
directions, taking the decisions and outcomes of the
WSSD into account. Based on its deliberations, the
conference issued the Statement on Green Productivity,
which will form the basis for future GP activities.
In line with that statement, we will pay immediate
attention to methods for improving "unsustainable
patterns of production and consumption." For
this purpose, supply chain management from the standpoint
of GP needs to be examined. This is also in line with
the recommendations made by a high-level GP advisory
committee comprising representatives of private Japanese
corporations. Those corporations, particularly multinational
corporations, have extensive knowledge and experience
in environmental management. A close partnership with
them, as illustrated by the formation of that committee,
will therefore enrich the APO GP program. As suggested
by the committee, a detailed survey on green procurement
practices in some APO member countries will be conducted
by the APO, and the results will be reported at the
upcoming Workshop on Green Procurement in Manila.
We hope that similar actions and practices in respect
to green purchasing and procurement will be taken
throughout the APO region.
Apart from these special activities, the GP program
continues to explore avenues to expand and enrich
the GP concept and its wider application. Issues like
occupational health and safety, energy management,
hazardous waste management, water management, and
life cycle assessment were addressed throughout the
year under various multi-country programs and GP Demonstration
Projects (GPDPs). During 2002, special emphasis was
placed on eco-tourism related projects to commemorate
the International Year of Eco-tourism. In the area
of information dissemination, several publications,
posters, and CD-ROMs on GP-related issues were produced.
The GP homepage has been mobilized to spread information
relevant to GP more widely. The APO Secretariat has
continued to strengthen global networking for GP-related
projects with such organizations as the United Nations
Environment Programme, Asian Development Bank, and
US Environmental Protection Agency (US-EPA).
The Integrated Community Development (ICD) program
has contributed to sustainable development and poverty
alleviation through two major approaches. One is GPDPs
at the community level. Based on the successful implementation
of GP-ICD projects, the Vietnamese government in collaboration
with the APO has now launched a nationwide campaign
to broaden the impact of GP-ICD. The other approach
is to develop a core cadre to play a leading role
in sustainable community development. While these
approaches will remain unchanged, the ICD program
will further be strengthened by introducing the element
of kaizen in projects for rural life improvement.
Similar to its applications in the industrial sector,
it is expected that kaizen in the agricultural sector
will help alleviate poverty and enhance productivity
at the community level.
The agriculture and food sector still accounts for
a significant proportion of the national economy and
employment in most member countries. Recent experience
has shown that a nation's sustainable development
cannot be ensured without sound development of this
sector. Therefore APO projects in 2002 addressed the
issues of genetically modified organisms (GMOs), adoption
of quality assurance systems, and strengthening of
sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) measures. Sustainability
issues were highlighted, including watershed and irrigation
management, afforestation, and non-pesticide farming
methods. We are increasingly aware that the agricultural
sector has much in common with the APO thrust areas
of SMEs and GP. Thus, we will pay more attention to
two major areas in our activities: first, strengthening
the competitiveness of agriculture and agribusiness
through improved quality of products and their marketing;
and second, promoting more sustainable development
of agriculture including agricultural resource management
and environmental protection. Considering the importance
of this sector and its close linkages with thrust
areas, I would like to call for more vigorous and
continuous involvement of NPOs in this sector. I wish
to emphasize that functional liaisons should be reinforced
between NPOs and agriculture-related ministries and
agencies to plan and carry out APO agriculture projects
more meaningfully and smoothly.
I am pleased to report that the Development of NPOs
(DON) program has expanded in terms of the number
of member countries that have availed of the program
and the variety of services offered. As to the country-specific
program, we helped the Sri Lankan government to formulate
the national productivity policy for the public sector,
offered advice to the NPO Bangladesh in designing
a strategic action plan for productivity improvement,
and rendered expert services to the Vietnam Productivity
Center to upgrade its capabilities in IT and knowledge
management. At the same time, the multi-country program
continued to make distinct contributions to the institutional
development and capacity building of NPOs. In addition
to annual projects such as workshops on productivity
specialists, the APO best practice network has contributed
to strengthening linkages among member countries,
and now numerous client firms of NPOs are implementing
the best practices gleaned from the network to attain
higher productivity and increase their competitiveness.
The Forum on Development of NPOs held in Tehran, Iran,
in December last year discussed how to measure the
integrated performance of NPOs, which is linked with
the long-term vision and strategies. Based upon the
concept of the balanced scorecard, the forum attempted
to design a generic scorecard for NPOs.
Efforts at disseminating information about the APO
and reference materials for productivity promotion
continued to be given special focus. For this purpose,
increasing use is being made of electronic media,
particularly the APO Web site on the Internet. The
number of visitors to the APO Web site has been rising
steadily, and the Intranet/LAN system in the Secretariat
is functioning effectively. In June last year, the
APOnet was set up to serve as a hub of information
exchange and networking among member countries, offering
a prime source on productivity promotion. I hope all
NPOs will make full use of this facility. Our next
plan is to introduce e-books on the APO Web site.
It is our hope that this e-networking will generate
greater multiplier effects of APO projects and foster
closer communication among the APO Secretariat, the
NPOs, and project participants for better program
planning, implementation, and follow-up. The 2002
edition of the APO Asia-Pacific Productivity Data
and Analysis, which was first introduced in 2001,
has already been published. I believe that the second
edition presents productivity parameters in a more
comprehensive manner than the first. However, all-out
efforts should be made to improve further its usefulness
to policy makers in government and business and all
others concerned. Since I have a belief that APO projects
should be planned reflecting not only regional and
sub-regional strategies but also country-wise strategy,
I also hope that this publication will become more
useful for this purpose too. For those reasons, I
would like to urge further cooperation of all NPOs
for improving the publication.
I reported our financial position to the previous
GBM in Malaysia. In order to cope with the financial
constraints due mainly to the considerable reduction
of special funds, I mentioned that the Secretariat
would spare no efforts to make the best use of funds
available. A number of actions have been taken in
line with my statement. For example, Secretariat staff,
participants, experts, and resource persons are already
using discount air tickets. However, the use of discount
tickets by participants can be implemented effectively
only in cooperation with the NPOs. Participants in
APO projects constitute the largest group of ticket
users, averaging 2,200 per year, and the savings thus
derived are expected to be quite substantial.
Furthermore, we also need your cooperation and assistance
in regard to the local implementation costs. We wish
to reconfirm the decision made by the Governing Body
in 1998 that member countries should meet full local
implementation costs when hosting APO projects. Two
important implications are derived from this decision.
First, bearing local implementation costs demonstrates
the spirit of mutual cooperation among member countries
on which the APO is based. Second, the APO's general
funds thus saved can be used for other meaningful
purposes such as generating new projects to meet the
felt-needs of member countries. Of course, I am aware
that many NPOs face budgetary constraints. In spite
of the difficulties and constraints on your part,
I hope that all NPOs will make further efforts to
secure the necessary budget to honor the spirit of
mutual cooperation and the principle of meeting all
local implementation costs.
In the age of globalization, the APO must continue
to network and connect with other international organizations
in fulfilling its mission and goals. This will help
create synergies that will improve access to new resources,
both human and financial, while at the same time make
our vision and achievements known globally. I must
emphasize that the synergy derived from the pooling
of resources and capabilities from within and beyond
Asia and the Pacific has been mutually beneficial
and must be sustained. Let me express my appreciation
to the International Labour Organization, United Nations
Environment Programme, Food and Agriculture Organization,
International Atomic Energy Agency, Asian Development
Bank, Food and Fertilizer Technology Center for the
Asian and Pacific Region, Colombo Plan Secretariat,
UBIFRANCE, Canadian International Development Agency,
State of Hawaii, Carl Duisberg Gessellschaft, Maastricht
School of Management, Regional Institute of Environmental
Technology (Singapore), Asian and Pacific Development
Centre (APDC), and European Partners for the Environment
(EPE). I look forward to the deepening of relationships
already entrenched over the years, and welcome continued
assistance and cooperation from them in forming new
working partnerships in the future.
Ladies and gentlemen, the productivity movement
is a marathon without a finish line. The challenges
of productivity promotion in the future will by no
means be less than those in the past four decades.
New development scenarios in the region and the world,
rapid advances in technology, unique models in business
and production processes, and fresh demands from society
will require new and different perspectives and strategies
in our productivity endeavor. We should respond to
new challenges with innovative and creative minds
so as to retain our distinct credibility. This task
can be achieved by cementing partnerships among member
countries and by pooling resources and sharing experiences
among them. The new vision of the APO referred to
earlier has been developed based primarily upon the
shared wisdom and aspirations of member countries.
Partnerships nurtured over the years are particularly
relevant today because they are of real power when
riding out uncertainties in the prevailing environment.
Of all the challenges facing us, we need to place
priority on answering one question: "Where is
our productivity movement heading?" My question
is simple but answers are not so easy to find because
of uncertainty and discontinuity in the global economy.
Answers may not be identical among member countries
in light of their diverse needs and requirements.
I therefore wish to propose that this Workshop Meeting,
especially during the strategic planning discussion,
identify and delineate specific directions and major
strategies the APO should adopt in the 21st century.
In this regard I would like to suggest that the guidelines
of region- and country-wise strategies for productivity
improvement should be formulated through the discussions,
so that our productivity movement will not only grow
but also more effectively serve the exact needs of
each member country.
I would like once again to thank the Government
of the Philippines for hosting this meeting and the
Development Academy of the Philippines for making
excellent arrangements. I wish you all very fruitful
discussions and an enjoyable stay in Manila. Thank
you.
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