At the meeting of the Global Information Network on Chemicals (GINC), held in Tokyo, Japan in December 1995, it was proposed that under the International Programme on Chemical Safety (IPCS) and the Global Information Network on Chemicals, the ILO/FINNIDA Asian-Pacific Regional Programme on Occupational Safety and Health (ASIA-OSH) would develop and establish a pilot national chemical safety information network in the Asia- Pacific region. The first pilot network was established in Thailand in March 1996.

The purpose of establishing a national chemical safety information network is, by means of networking to enhance the knowledge of and cooperation among agencies, institutions, organizations and industries with regard to the safe use of chemicals. The network also seeks to improve information exchange on activities related to chemical safety at the national level. It is hoped that, in the long term, networking as a whole will contribute to the reduction of accidents and diseases resulting from the unsafe use of chemicals.

At the Asian Regional Meeting of the Inter-Governmental Forum on Chemical Safety (IFCS), held in Manila, the Philippines in June 1996, it was suggested that the founding of a second national chemical safety information network in the Philippines would be highly beneficial. Taking into account ongoing activities related to chemical safety and environmental protection in the Philippines, it was felt that the situation in the Philippines was highly conducive to the establishment of an enduring chemical safety information network.

The increase in the production and use of chemicals in the Philippines, stemming from rapid industrialization, poses health risks and has adverse effects on human health and on the environment. Further, the level of awareness of the dangers inherent in the use of chemicals, and the capability to address the present and potential problems brought about by hazardous chemicals, needed to be improved. The establishment of a chemical safety information network in the Philippines, to provide and disseminate accurate, relevant and timely information on chemical safety, is therefore opportune. 1

The Chemical Safety Information Network in the Philippines was the sixteenth national information network in the Asia-Pacific region initiated by ASIA-OSH between 1994 and 1996. Fourteen of these are occupational safety and health information networks, while the other two are chemical safety information networks, one in Thailand and one in the Philippines.

The workshop on establishing a National Chemical Safety Information Network in the Philippines was held from 3 to 5 December 1996 in Manila. The workshop was organized by the Asian-Pacific Regional Programme on Occupational Safety and Health in collaboration with the Department of the Environment and Natural Resources of the Environmental Management Bureau of the Philippines (DENR), the ILO Area Office in Manila and the WHO Regional Office in Manila. The workshop was attended by 18 participants from different agencies, institutions and organizations dealing with chemical safety in the Philippines.

The participants at the workshop identified the key government agencies, employers' and workers' organizations, academia as well as the non-governmental organizations dealing with chemical safety in the Philippines. The participants drew up a policy statement, a detailed action plan and an outline for a future Memorandum of Agreement on the Chemical Safety Information Network in the Philippines, which, it was hoped, will be signed by senior officials of the respective participating agencies, giving it formal recognition.

The goals of the network, as stated in the draft Policy Statement, are to foster ecological balance and achieve a better quality of life through proper knowledge, attitudes and practices with regard to chemical safety. In particular, the network proposes to address several objectives, including the following:

(1) the development of mechanisms to put into operation the Chemical Safety Information Network in the Philippines

(2) the collation of existing information on resources and capabilities, such as human resources, available reference materials, hardware, software, electronic databases, facilities, and communication methods

(3) the generation of information on chemical safety within the Chemical Safety Information Network

(4) the promotion and dissemination of accurate, relevant and timely information on chemical safety

(5) the development and strengthening of the capabilities for information exchange among institutions participating in the network

(6) the development and strengthening of cooperation and collaboration among institutions participating in the network

(7) the establishment of linkages with other relevant networks

(8) promotion of the safe manufacture, handling, storage, transportation, and disposal of hazardous chemicals.

The workshop proposed that the Department of the Environment and Natural Resources DENR) which is the designated national focal point of the International Programme on Chemical Safety in the Philippines, would act as the initial network facilitator.

The Department of the Environment and Natural Resources would also initially chair the Advisory Group of the Chemical Safety Information Network in the Philippines. In the future, both the role of facilitator and that of chairman of the Advisory Group are expected to rotate among network members. The initial Advisory Group and technical working groups could be formed by the agencies, institutions and organizations represented at the workshop.

The work accomplished during the workshop clearly implied that the Chemical Safety Information Network in the Philippines has the potential to become a functioning, sustainable network influencing chemical safety issues in the Philippines.

The workshop proposed that the representatives from the agencies, institutions and organizations forming the core group of the Chemical Safety Information Network in the Philippines would seek approval for the network and its activities, from their highest officials. Thereafter, the agencies, institutions and organizations propose to sign a Memorandum of Agreement on the Chemical Safety Information Network in the Philippines.

Comments on the Chemical Safety Information Network in the Philippines are now being submitted to the network facilitator by the heads of various agencies, institutions and organizations. A meeting will be held not later than the first week of May 1997 to finalize the Memorandum of Agreement, to prepare a timetable for activities, and to determine a focal agency for each activity to be carried out within the Chemical Safety Information Network.

***

Ms. Ella Deocadiz is the Chief of the Environmental Quality Division and
Ms. Angelita Brabante is the Chief of the Chemical and Chemical Waste Management Section of the Environmental Management Bureau of the Department of the Environment and Natural Resources
in the Philippines.

Ms. Pia Markkanen
Asian-Pacific Regional Programme on
Occupational Safety and Health
International Labour Organisation
P.O. Box 2-349
Bangkok 10200, Thailand
_______________________________

1 Draft Policy Statement drawn up by he participants at the workshop.

Updated by PAP/SUT/TRS. Approved by BKL. Last updated on 19 January 2001

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