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Social and economic background
In the past 100 years, most countries in the region have undergone unparalleled social, political and economic transformations. Colonialism, which dominated much of the region, was replaced by other political systems. Economies, which were largely agrarian, became industrialized, export-oriented and better integrated with global markets. Agriculture was intensified to increase production for home consumption and export.
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Rapid industrialization and economic growth have changed virtually every dimension of life, especially in East and Southeast Asia. Yet, by many measures - of health, education, nutrition, as well as income - the quality of life within the region remains poor for most people. At least one in three Asians has no access to safe drinking water and at least one in two has no access to sanitation (ADB 1997). Average cereal consumption is one-third that in the developed countries, and average calorie intake, though rising, is low in most sub-regions (see graph). Literacy rates tend to be low, particularly for women (ADB 1997). Poverty is a major problem: some 75 per cent of the world's poor live in Asia (UNESCAP/ADB 1995).
In most countries, economic development and industrialization have taken a heavy toll on the environment. At the turn of the century, environmental degradation in the region was largely due to poor farming methods, colonial expansionist land practices in South and Southeast Asia, and foreign invasions and mineral exploitation in China. Japan and China were among the first industrialized economies in the region. Following World War II, there was rapid growth of the commercial and services sectors in Japan and improvements in health, education, housing and nutrition. In Southeast Asia, rapid economic growth began in the early 1980s. Change came later to South Asia where Structural Adjustment Programmes and economic liberalization have only recently begun to be implemented.
The economies of Australia and New Zealand are based more on natural resources than other industrialized countries in the region. Agriculture and mining account for most export earnings derived from trade in commodities in Australia (Commonwealth of Australia 1998). Pacific island states rely heavily on their natural resources directly through agricultural production, forestry and fisheries and indirectly through tourism. The Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of these small countries comprises a large proportion of their total area and, for some, offshore marine resources are almost the only basis for economic development.
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In the past decade, economic growth rates have varied dramatically. The fastest growing economies were in China and Thailand, both of which registered about 8 per cent average annual growth during 1985-95. In 1995 GDP per capita ranged from US$14 791 for Australasia and the Pacific, to US$1 183 for Southeast Asia to only US$484 for South Asia (see graph).
Economic growth has been largely fuelled by industrialization and international trade. During 1980-95, the share of the industrial and services sectors in the region's total GDP increased significantly while the agricultural sector declined, except in most Mekong basin countries. In 1960, 75 per cent of working Asians were employed in agriculture; by 1990 this had fallen to 62 per cent. Over the same period, the share of people working in industry grew from around 15 to 21 per cent (ADB 1997). The dramatic economic growth rates of the early part of the 1990s have been followed by equally dramatic economic slumps, particularly in Southeast Asia. Average economic growth rates in the Pacific island countries also appear to have turned sharply negative since the East Asian financial crisis.
Economic growth has been accompanied by some improvement in health and education, although the region lags far behind the developed world. Adult literacy varies from only 15 per cent female literacy in Afghanistan and 41 per cent male literacy in Nepal to more than 95 per cent for both sexes in countries such as the Republic of Korea and Japan (UNESCO 1995). The literacy rate is also high in Australia, although some groups still have poor literacy skills (Commonwealth of Australia 1998).
Life expectancies in some countries are now comparable with those of middle- and high-income countries. There has also been a marked decline in infant mortality, from 68 per 1000 live births in 1990 to 59 per 1000 in 1995, although great disparities still exist in the region (UNESCAP/ADB 1995).
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The advantages of rapid economic growth have not filtered down to all levels of society. Poverty remains a significant problem, particularly in South Asia where there are more than 515 million of the region's 950 million poor people (UNDP 1997) and around 39 per cent of the population is below the poverty line, with numbers still increasing.
Rural poverty, together with rapid industrialization, has led to rates of rural-urban migration that are significantly higher than the global average, although at around 33 per cent the proportion of urban population in the region was lower than the global average of 45 per cent in 1995 (United Nations Population Division 1997).
Population densities in South Asia are among the highest in the world, and there is great pressure on land resources throughout the region - in which some 60 per cent of the world population depends on 30 per cent of its land area (UNESCAP/ADB 1995). Bangladesh had 922 persons per km2 in 1995 (WRI, UNEP, UNDP and WB 1998). The combination of rural poverty and population pressure has forced people to move to ecologically-fragile areas. In addition, the number of landless people is increasing.
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Population growth rates have declined in recent years and the region's overall growth rate is now the same as the world average of 1.4 per cent. The highest sub-regional figures are 1.9 and 1.7 per cent a year for South and Southeast Asia respectively (United Nations Population Division 1996).
The combination of high population density and growth, rapid industrialization and urbanization, and poverty has taken its toll on the region's natural resource base, accelerated environmental degradation and led to a substantial increase in air and water pollution. Other significant environmental problems include land degradation caused by deforestation and inappropriate agricultural practices, water loss, and mangrove clearance for aquaculture. Estimates of the economic costs of environmental degradation in Asia range from 1 to 9 per cent of national GNPs (ADB 1997).
In addition, the natural disasters which regularly hit the region, especially the South Pacific island states, can have extremely damaging impacts on both the environment and fragile economies (see box).
Environmental experts are not agreed about the relative significance of the various causes of environmental degradation. Rapid population growth is often blamed but the damage continues even in countries with low and declining population growth rates (ADB 1997). Economic growth is also blamed but rising incomes eventually lead to improvements as growing popular demand for a better environment forces a favourable policy shift. This point is not far off for Asia's more prosperous newly industrialized economies (ADB 1997).
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Asia's environmental crisis may be mainly a result of market and policy failures, neglect and institutional weaknesses. Only a few countries in East Asia, including China, have succeeded in implementing policies to reverse the trend of continuing degradation.
The most important external force shaping the region's future will be the increased integration of the world economy. Global trade provides access to the information, ideas, technologies, and the other critical resources that are the backbone of economic progress. Greater mobility of international capital will also mean less scope for autonomy in macro-economic policy. In the future, as recent events in Southeast and East Asia have shown, global capital markets will react to changes in fiscal and monetary policies more quickly and more severely than in the past.
The most important external force shaping the region's future will be the increased integration of the world economy. Global trade provides access to the information, ideas, technologies, and the other critical resources that are the backbone of economic progress. Greater mobility of international capital will also mean less scope for autonomy in macro-economic policy. In the future, as recent events in Southeast and East Asia have shown, global capital markets will react to changes in fiscal and monetary policies more quickly and more severely than in the past.
A 'business as usual' scenario suggests that continued rapid economic growth and industrialization may result in further environmental damage and that the region may become more degraded, less forested, more polluted and less ecologically diverse in the future. Asia's particular style of urbanization - toward megacities - is likely to further exacerbate environmental and social stresses (ADB 1997).
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