For all three, Political Cooperation, Economic Cooperation and Functional Cooperation, constitute a trilogy. Put simply, political cooperation brings about peace and stability which makes possible economic development and cooperation which, in turn, brings about progress and prosperity.
Functional cooperation provides the means for sharing that prosperity.
And shared prosperity brings about conditions conducive to peace. The Bangkok Declaration also encouraged the promotion of Southeast Asian studies. Notable in that Summit was the reiteration of the need to cooperate in the fight against drug abuse and trafficking. Labor supply grows at an average of 3.0 percent per year with female participation rate of 52 percent at the beginning of the 1990s. As a result of socio-economic development and increasing availability of modern medical technology, a remarkable decline in mortality rate has also taken place.