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Historical causes of rural poverty and general recommendations for work among rural youth in India, Malaysia, Philippines, Sri Lanka, and Thailand are presented in this summary of national reports given before the Rural Youth Study Group in 1976. In addition to study papers on each country, the volume contains an introduction on rural youth and the rural predicament which summarizes the countries' common history, foreign influences, governmental and church-related rural development projects, rural poverty, and five essential systematic phases of rural development. Each national study paper contains a map, historical summary, and basic geographic, political, and socioeconomic data. Subtopics are as follows: India--Indian independence movement, peasant movements, youth student movements; Malaysia--racial problem, rural economy, rural youth in West Malaysia, church role in rural development; Philippines--general background, land ownership, rural struggle, survey of village youth organization, local churches; Sri Lanka--political-economic structures of rural society, caste system and religion, role of youth in rural struggle, survey of rural youth development programs; Thailand--community solidarity, role of religion, economic problems of villagers, role of youth/students in rural struggle. A concluding paper treats the role of youth in the national struggle (training, motivating church youth). (RS)

This paper represents the final report of a regional seminar (Asian countries) on educational alternatives held under the auspices of UNESCO in December 1976. The seminar focused on educational services for children from 5 to 14 years of age and emphasized the needs of children in poverty areas. Limitations and inequities in the current educational systems are discussed. Some of the educational issues considered in the seminar include: the needs of children attending and not attending school; urban-rural differences; socioeconomic differences; the child's life in and out of the classroom; the relevance of schooling to future needs (as a worker and as part of the community); consideration of the individual's ability, background, and future development; and the role of the parent and community in the educational system. Local organization and supervision are considered necessary for educational relevancy. The report concludes with discussions of various methods, resources, and management considerations for developing and delivering educational services. Suggestions for future actions at the national, international, and regional level are included. (BD)

More than half of the world's population, and more than 70 percent of the world's poor live in rural areas where hunger, illiteracy, and low school achievement are common. Education in rural areas is crucial for achieving sustainable development. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations and UNESCO's International Institute for Educational Planning recently completed a comprehensive international study of education for rural development, focusing on constraints to achieving Education for All (EFA) in rural areas, improving educational access and quality, and strengthening the links between education and rural development. To continue this discourse, a seminar involving nine Asian countries was held in Bangkok in November 2002. Panel presentations and plenary discussions focused on five themes: addressing rural challenges to EFA, enhancing food security through education and training, the role of education in targeting rural poverty, changes in rural labor markets, and the impact on education of HIV/AIDS in rural areas. This proceedings summarizes sessions on each theme; presents group findings on rural community participation in local development, experiences in multisectoral coordination and programs, and approaches to institutional change; and includes five selected contributions. These are: (1) "Contributions of Education to Alleviating Rural Poverty" (Yu Fuzeng); (2) "Supporting Rural Education for Poverty Reduction: Issues and Approaches" (Chris A. Spohr); (3) "Responding to the Transformation of Rural Labour Markets: Implications for Education and Training" (Samuel T. Mancebo); (4) "Landcare in the Philippines: Developing Capacities of 'Farmers of the Future' and Their Communities" (Tom Vandenbosch); and (5) "Food for Education and Rural Development" (Anette Haller). A seminar program and lists of participants and papers presented are included. (SV)

The proceedings of the Regional Institute of Higher Education and Development's seminar and the meaning and implications of social commitment in higher education are reported. The welcoming address (S. Nasution) and the opening address (Y. B. Dato' Murad bin Mohd. Noor) welcome the participants and set the tone for the discussions to follow. The seminar was broken down into three categories. Part I, "The Meaning and Implications of Social Commitment in Higher Education," (Wu Teh-Yao) sets a broad base for discussion. Part II, "Socio-Economic Needs and Problems: Challenge to Higher Education in Southeast Asia," contains five papers related to higher education in Southeast Asia, using Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, and Thailand as focus areas. Part III, "Means and Methods of Achieving Integrated Programmes in Higher Education in Southeast Asia to Meet Basic Needs for Food," contains six papers again focusing on the areas in Part II as examples. The final section offers conclusions and recommendations. It is concluded that universities should inculcate social commitment and responsibility as well as directing meaningful involvement among students and staff in meeting social obligations. Several recommendations are made by several countries for regional and national projects. Appendices include a program of the seminar and a list of participants and observers. (LC)

This collection of conference proceedings contains the opening speeches, committee reports and resource papers on four topics: promoting the integrity of the family; meeting the minimum needs of the family; the role of self-preservation and promotion of the family; and intervention techniques of social workers in favor of rural and urban families. The premise of the conference was that if the family as a unit of social life is to be promoted and strengthened, then the national planning authority in a country should accept it as a unit of welfare. The conference was attended by 149 representatives from Asia, Europe and North America. Accompanying the conference proceedings is a pamphlet that outlines the constitution of the Asian Union of Family Organizations (AUFO), an organization that was formed at the 1977 Asian Regional Conference on "Family as a Unit of Welfare in National Planning." (SS)

This report contains the proceedings of a 1978 meeting held in Kathmandu, Nepal to examine major problems and aspirations of Asian youth. Thirty three people from 18 countries participated. There are three parts to the report. Part I summarizes the six main themes of the meeting. They are: concept of youth as viewed by Asian cultures; concepts and patterns of development in the region in the context of Asian cultures; current issues of youth policies and programs in the Asian region; guidelines for future youth policies in Asia; practical action to be considered in the near future; and cooperation among Asian countries and at the international level. Part II contains abridged case studies presented at the meeting. The syntheses of country papers are in Part III. The papers discuss the problems of youth in 17 Asian countries and the measures, both welfare and developmental, taken by the different governments to deal with those problems. It is pointed out that western solutions to youth problems in Asia are not relevant. The solutions that the Asian governments are seeking cannot be found totally outside the socio-economic and cultural fabric of the countries concerned and are bound to be different from those that, up to this time, have been attempted. This means that the problems themselves have to be seen in a different perspective. (Author/RM)