제 목 : Cooperation In Safety and Health in the Asia-Pacific Region:
일 자 : 1996년 01월
제공처 : SAFETY & HEALTH IN JAPAN
I attended the 1995 annual meeting of the Asia - Pacific Occupational
Safety and Health Organization (APOSHO) held in New Delhi, India from
November 16 to 19. APOSHO is an organization established by safety and
health organizations mainly in the Asia and Pacific region, under a
proposal by the Australian National Safety Council, to promote the
exchange of information and regional cooperation for advancement and
development. This regional organization has held annual meetings each
year, starting from its first meeting in 1985, with the number of member
organizations increasing from the initial six to the current twenties.
It is widely recognized that, in order to enhance safety level in one
country, voluntary activities of employers are really important, in
addition to appropriate regulations set by the government and their
strict enforcement. Acoordingly, the roles of APOSHO member
organizations in their home countries are quite important.
It is very satisfying to see APOSHO actively pursuing its goals
supported by the sincere efforts of member organizations. Promoting
personal contact among the heads of these organizations for mutual
confidence is essential to advance future cooperative activities from
the mid - and long - term points of view. The meetings of APOSHO held
in the decade have actually played a significant role set at the
beginning.
Given that such personal contacts have already been established, we
should proceed to the next stage in which substantial systems to promote
pragmatic cooperation will be constructed, in particular, in terms of
educational systems, technical information exchanges, and database
development.
In the light of the fact that voluntary safety and health activities
developed by Japanese enterprises have played important roles in the
reduction of industrial accidents, I believe that the experience of
Japaness private industries should actively be transferred to
neighboring countries, as a way of Japan's contribution to the
development of this region. The Japan Industrial Safety and Health
Association will also make efforts to improve its programs for
international cooperation based on such a viewpoint.
Recently, international organizations such as ISO, ILO and WHO have
embarked on efforts to formulate evaluation standards for safety and
health management. Discussion among the concerned parties is carried on
for the development of such global standards. The APOSHO annual meeting
of this year was also the venue of active discussion on this matter.
JISHA has also been making efforts to work out such standards for
domestic purposes during the past several years. Preliminary standards
have been tentatively completed and are being used on a trial basis at
several workplaces. I believe that these draft standards can be used as
a reference for discussions at ISO and other organizations. JISHA
intends to actively contribute to the future preparation of evaluation
standards for safety and health management, particularly in terms of
technical areas.
In conclusion, I sincerely hope that the year 1996 will bring a bright
future to all of you.
Masayuki Nomiyama
President
Japan Industrial Safety and Health Association
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