And yet, it is ironic that while technology has vastly improved, agricultural productivity in the field still has lagged behind. While agricultural productivity in the laboratory has advanced so many giant steps, so many of the world's people still remain poor and hungry.

In a report of the united nations food and agriculture organization (FAO), it is estimated that 800 million people are still chronically undernourished, and two million of this number are children under the age of five.

It is the tragedy of this generation that in their struggle to rise above mere subsistence levels, so many people are still forced to eat next year's seeds to allay this year's hunger.

The pressure of our high population growth rate and the need to provide the minimum basic needs to an ever-increasing national society are now taking a big chunk of the government budget, giving less and less for the improvement and development of our agriculture such as support and training of farmers, improved agricultural and irrigation technology, and research and development, all of which are necessary to achieve improved food production.

Quite clearly, we cannot long afford the effects of this steep population growth rate and the highly vulnerable condition of our natural resources and environment.

This warning has been sounded loud and clear on many platforms, here and abroad. The widening gap between food supplies and population growth, particularly in those areas of the world where the specter of hunger and malnutrition is most visible, is an ominous daily threat to millions around the world.

A Synergistic Balance

There is no better way, in my belief, to meet this threat than for every nation to strike a synergistic balance between the three developmental factors of population, resources and environment. And this brings me back to the main theme of your meeting: Women in the 2 1 st Century - A Strategy for Prosperity and Peace.

Here in Asia - the rising colossus of the 2 1 century - women will play a special role within our cultures and our societies as agents of growth and change. And I mean growth and change not only in material terms, but also in respect of the social and human values at the heart of Asia' s culture.

The Philippines chairs hosts in 1996 the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), including its leaders' summit of 1 8 heads of government. For the first time in APEC, food human resource development and population are being recognized as key issues to sustained economic growth. In preparation for the summit, APEC's technical experts, senior officials and ministers as well as business leaders will intensely examine these prob-lems.

Closing