Pesticide management approach towards protecting the safety and health of farmers in Southeast Asia
-
Norsyazwani Mohammad
,
Vivien How
Abstract
Background:
It is estimated that pesticide production and use have increased continuously in the countries of Southeast Asia in recent years. Within the context of protecting the safety and health of workers in the agricultural sector, there is an existing gap in the implementation of the pesticide management framework because safety and health effects arising from occupational exposures continue to be reported.
Objective:
This study aims to provide narrative similarities, differences and weaknesses of the existing pesticide management system in Southeast Asian countries (Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam) within the context of occupational safety and health.
Methods:
This is preliminary traditional review study. Pesticide regulation and management at the country level were identified using web-based search engines such as Scopus, ScienceDirect, PubMed and Google. Book, reports, legislation document and other documents retrieved were also gathered from international organizations and specific websites of governmental agency in Southeast Asian countries. The scope of this review is only limited to literature written in English. In total, 44 review articles, reports and documents were gathered for this study. The approach of pesticide management in protecting safety and health in the agricultural setting were benchmarked according to the elements introduced by the United States Environmental Protection Agency, namely, (1) the protection of workers and (2) the practice of safety.
Results:
All countries have assigned a local authority and government organization to manage and control pesticide use in the agricultural sector. The countries with the highest usage of pesticide are Thailand, Philippines and Malaysia. Most Southeast Asian countries have emphasized safety practice in the management of pesticide usage, but there were less emphasis on the element of protection of workers within the framework in Indonesia, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam.
Conclusion:
The governing bodies in the countries of Southeast Asia have placed significant effort to develop framework related to pesticide management at the country level. The implementation of pesticide management based on the existing framework is evident in most of the countries but needs to be improved. It is suggested that emphasis be given to the implementation of diagnosis, health surveillance and reporting system as well as following or adopting standard guidelines for the protection of workers in terms of safety and health in the agricultural sector.
Author Statement
Research funding: This review paper was made possible because of the financial support from the Ministry of Higher Education Malaysia (MyBrain15 Scheme) and the Universiti Putra Malaysia (Inisiatif Putra Siswazah) under Vote 9466400. Conflict of interest: None of the authors had any conflicts of interest, and there was no corporate sponsorship of this research. Informed consent: Informed consent is not applicable. Ethical approval: The conducted research is not related to either human or animal use.
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©2018 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston
Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- Editorial
- Environmental health, engineering and public health
- Review Articles
- Mitochondrial dysfunction: a key player in the pathogenesis of cardiovascular diseases linked to air pollution
- Pesticide management approach towards protecting the safety and health of farmers in Southeast Asia
- Synthesis and characterization of the removal of organic pollutants in effluents
- A systematic review of micro correlates of maternal mortality
- A review on the sustainability of textile industries wastewater with and without treatment methodologies
- Mini Review
- Potential causes of asthma in the United Arab Emirates: drawing insights from the Arabian Gulf
- Original Article
- Moon/sun – suicide
- Short Communication
- Prevention-intervention strategies to reduce exposure to e-waste
Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- Editorial
- Environmental health, engineering and public health
- Review Articles
- Mitochondrial dysfunction: a key player in the pathogenesis of cardiovascular diseases linked to air pollution
- Pesticide management approach towards protecting the safety and health of farmers in Southeast Asia
- Synthesis and characterization of the removal of organic pollutants in effluents
- A systematic review of micro correlates of maternal mortality
- A review on the sustainability of textile industries wastewater with and without treatment methodologies
- Mini Review
- Potential causes of asthma in the United Arab Emirates: drawing insights from the Arabian Gulf
- Original Article
- Moon/sun – suicide
- Short Communication
- Prevention-intervention strategies to reduce exposure to e-waste
