It has also been recognized that while it is possible to achieve better outcomes by selecting for development those industries with labour-intensive technologies, or industries in which different combinations of labour and capital intensity exist side by side, there are cases in which technological alternatives are not available, and where, if a particular industry is to be established at all, there is no other choice than to adopt a technology even though it may be a capital-intensive technology which employs relatively little labour. It is also true that often developing countries insist on the most up-to-date technology (or are obliged to use it by multinational enterprises willing to invest), although it may not, in fact, be appropriate to their objectives. The political dependence of the colonial era in many countries has been replaced by technological dependence.
2. Asia is emerging as one of the key arenas in the battle to save the planet. Ecological security for the planet will not be won without Asian involvement. The challenge is to encourage Asian nations to plan their economic development using ecologically sustainable technologies, rather than the inappropriate and environmentally destructive technologies the West would like to foist on them.