ARC Strategy-Paving the Way from Agrarian Reform to Poverty Reduction

Assessing the Impact of Agrarian Reform and the ARC Strategy on Poverty Using Census, National Housing Surveys, and ARC Data

A preliminary report on the Rural Neighbourhood Development Project in Tuen Mun and Yuen Long : implementation and achievement

With funding support from the Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust, the Asia-Pacific Institute of Ageing Studies (APIAS) of Lingnan University collaborated with Tuen Tsz Wai San Hing Tsuen Tsing Chuen Wai Rural Community Service Centre of Yan Oi Tong and Ngau Tam Mei Community Development Project of the Salvation Army to launch the first batch of professional support team-led (PST) district-based programme: Jockey Club Age-friendly City Project – Rural Neighbourhood Development Project (the programme) in April 2018. The programme provided training to residents in Tuen Mun and Yuen Long rural areas to be Rural Befrienders, they were well-equipped with skills to regularly visit older persons residing in nearby areas, raise awareness among the older persons about home safety and fall prevention, and foster connection between the older persons and Rural Befrienders as well as their neighbourship by establishing a support network in rural areas. The programme also invited an occupational therapist to do home assessments and make changes to the older persons’ living environment in order to achieve the long-term goal of ageing in place. Ageing in place is considered to be a critical global approach to caring for older persons. The framework promotes an agenda that support older persons to live in a familiar environment and enjoy added autonomy, which is beneficial to their physical and mental health. Hong Kong Government has also embraced the concept of ageing in place in the elderly care policy. Accordingly, the government recently initiated different programmes for Community Care and Support Services to facilitate ageing in place by engaging older persons in their communities. However, the current social environment can barely keep pace with the needs of the rapidly ageing population. According to the results of the Jockey Club Age-friendly City Project baseline assessment conducted in Tuen Mun and Yuen Long Districts, older persons in rural Hong Kong tend to be overly disadvantaged as regards community support services when compared with those in urban areas, leaving many of them with no choice but to settle in elderly homes once having mobility decline. Given this context, the programme generated social capital by consolidating the mutual support network in rural neighbourhoods in Tuen Mun and Yuen Long Districts, in response to the needs of older persons. The programme lasted for over 10 months, and more than 50 trained Rural Befrienders participated in volunteer service with over 100 elderly beneficiaries. The programme enhanced public awareness of the living conditions of older persons in the rural communities through public education activities, such as street exhibitions and the production of Age-friendly City Teaching Kit. Study Funded ByThe Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust(Part of the Jockey Club Age-friendly City Project) Contributors of ReportKa Ho MOKWai Tak SZECheuk Man LEUNGZhuoyi WENPadmore Adusei AMOAHChak Kwan CHANLai Wah L

Studies in Trade and Investment - AGRICULTURAL TRADE - PLANTING THE SEEDS OF REGIONAL LIBERALIZATION IN ASIA

this chapter attempts to evaluate the impact of agricultural trade reform in the Asia-Pacific region, focusing on RTAs.Agricultural trade liberalization, Asia-Pacific region, preferential trade agreements

Asia-Pacific cyber insights

This report aims to give insight into the wealth of cyber perspectives across the Asia–Pacific and amplify the regional voice on the key themes and questions of the Global Conference on CyberSpace 2015 in April 2015. Overview The Asia-Pacific region incorporates some of the most mature cyber actors in the world as well as some of the least connected. Governments throughout the region are becoming increasingly aware of the importance of cyberspace, however the capabilities, needs, and priorities of each state lie across a wide spectrum. Asia–Pacific cyber perspectives are far more diverse and dynamic than the dominant narratives coming from the ‘cyber great powers’ and it is important that the region’s distinct voices are heard in international cyber discussions. This report aims to give insight into the wealth of cyber perspectives across the Asia–Pacific and amplify the regional voice on the key themes and questions of the Global Conference on CyberSpace 2015 (GCCS) in April 2015. To achieve this the Australian Strategic Policy Institute’s International Cyber Policy Centre partnered with the Institute of Strategic & International Studies Malaysia to host a multistakeholder workshop to gather and collate the expertise of a broad cross-section of Asia–Pacific cyber experts. With generous support from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the workshop brought together participants from government, the private sector, academia, think tanks, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), as well as regional and international organisations from 12 Asia–Pacific countries. The report represents a collation of the thoughts and perspectives from the workshop and subsequent discussions. It is based on the key themes and questions of the GCCS and structured around the GCCS agenda. The intention was not to achieve consensus but instead accurately portray the points of convergence and divergence across the region. Throughout the process the recurring themes of clarity, capacity, and responsibility emerged as ways to ensure a more reliable, secure, and stable cyberspace. The findings of this effort will be presented at an Asia-Pacific Borrel, an official side-event of the GCCS

Globalization of Production and the Competitiveness of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises in Asia and the Pacific: Trends and Prospects

This final section reviews the requirements for increasing the competitiveness prospects of Asia-Pacific SMEs within the context of the challenges of the globalization of production, and seeks to provide some specific recommendations on how SME development in the region could be taken in new and potentially fruitful directions. These recommendations seek to address the core question running through this research paper, namely: what can usefully be done to increase the competitive performance of Asia-Pacific SMEs?SMEs, competitiveness, Asia, Pacific, policy, recommendations

JAPAN’S APPROACH TO ASIA PACIFIC ECONOMIC COOPERATION

Since emerging as a leading industrial economy, Japan has played an important role in promoting Asia Pacific economic cooperation. Japan has been instrumental in every major initiative in economic cooperation in the region over the past three decades, including the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum launched in 1989. Japans commitment to free trade, reinforced by its own experience of discriminatory trade policies in the immediate postwar period, has made it a strong advocate of the principle of open regionalism on which APEC is founded. Commitment to this principle has provided the basis for a process of unilateral liberalisation of trade, including agreed time frames, which allows the developing economies of the Asia Pacific region to progress towards free trade in a flexible manner and provides some protection against free riders. The strength of this commitment will assist member economies to counter pressure for preferential trading arrangements and facilitate the extension of free trade to sectors which involve cooperation with economies outside the Asia Pacific region.Japan, APEC, Asia Pacific

Asia-Pacific zoos in the 21st century : stakeholder perceptions of the roles and functions of zoos : a thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Environmental Management at Massey University, New Zealand

The advent of the anthropocene accentuates the transformation of ecosystems on a global scale. This study responds to these concerns by assessing the role and function of 21st century zoos in general and the Asia-Pacific zoos in particular. The lack of information on key zoo stakeholders (visitors, staff members, corporate sponsors and zoo associates) is significant in the Asia-Pacific region, particularly in Asia, where there are complexities that may stem from cultural and societal differences. Furthermore, current literature is predominantly based upon Western research and case studies, which rarely take into account the complexities and differences of Asia. This research considers the diversity of the Asia-Pacific region by examining the perceptions and attitudes of the four groups of key stakeholders. Zoos in six countries across the Asia-Pacific were visited over a period of six months to March 2013 in order to assess the diversity of the study region. A literature survey and meta-analysis of 138 zoo-based publications was employed to create a matrix table of themes, stakeholders, and research outcomes. These results were used to design survey instruments directed at stakeholder groups as well as provide a framework against which the results of this study can be compared and contrasted. Quantitative analysis such as Principal Component Analysis, Spearman’s Rho and Kruskal-Wallis H test were used to analyse the results. The face-to-face and computer-based instruments were augmented with the use of a reflective diary and personal work experience to triangulate and validate the research results. The results show that individual zoos across the world are facing similar challenges. Differences in educational backgrounds and socio-cultural norms within the Asia- Pacific region are reflected in stakeholders’ experiences, perceptions, and evaluations of zoos. The results show that there are many differences amongst Asia-Pacific zoo practices, visitor satisfaction, and stakeholder participation and these differences would make it extremely difficult to coordinate activities at a regional level to give them a single voice with a single agenda

Asia-Pacific zoos in the 21st century : stakeholder perceptions of the roles and functions of zoos : a thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Environmental Management at Massey University, New Zealand

The advent of the anthropocene accentuates the transformation of ecosystems on a global scale. This study responds to these concerns by assessing the role and function of 21st century zoos in general and the Asia-Pacific zoos in particular. The lack of information on key zoo stakeholders (visitors, staff members, corporate sponsors and zoo associates) is significant in the Asia-Pacific region, particularly in Asia, where there are complexities that may stem from cultural and societal differences. Furthermore, current literature is predominantly based upon Western research and case studies, which rarely take into account the complexities and differences of Asia. This research considers the diversity of the Asia-Pacific region by examining the perceptions and attitudes of the four groups of key stakeholders. Zoos in six countries across the Asia-Pacific were visited over a period of six months to March 2013 in order to assess the diversity of the study region. A literature survey and meta-analysis of 138 zoo-based publications was employed to create a matrix table of themes, stakeholders, and research outcomes. These results were used to design survey instruments directed at stakeholder groups as well as provide a framework against which the results of this study can be compared and contrasted. Quantitative analysis such as Principal Component Analysis, Spearman’s Rho and Kruskal-Wallis H test were used to analyse the results. The face-to-face and computer-based instruments were augmented with the use of a reflective diary and personal work experience to triangulate and validate the research results. The results show that individual zoos across the world are facing similar challenges. Differences in educational backgrounds and socio-cultural norms within the Asia- Pacific region are reflected in stakeholders’ experiences, perceptions, and evaluations of zoos. The results show that there are many differences amongst Asia-Pacific zoo practices, visitor satisfaction, and stakeholder participation and these differences would make it extremely difficult to coordinate activities at a regional level to give them a single voice with a single agenda