The Strategy and Action Plan for Sustainable Management of Peatlands in ASEAN Member Countries (or ASEAN Peatland Management Strategy (APMS) in short) has been developed by ASEAN Member States (AMS) to guide actions to support management of peatlands in the region in the period of 2006-2020. The APMS has been prepared due to the pressing need recognised by both local and international communities for wise use and sustainable management of peatlands as well as the emerging threat of peatland fire and its associated haze to the economy and health of the region, and its possibility of contributing to global climate change. The APMS is being developed within the framework of the ASEAN Peatland Management Initiative (APMI) and the ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution. The APMI was first proposed at the 9th ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on Haze (AMMH) on 11 June 2002 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The APMI was adopted at the 20th Meeting of the ASEAN Senior Officials on the Environment-Haze Technical Task Force (ASOEN-HTTF) in Manila in February 2003 together with an initial work plan (2003-2005). The APMI was highlighted at the 10th AMMH in Siem Reap, Cambodia in March 2003.