ISEAS Perspective provides analysis of specific current events and their significance for the Southeast Asian region. This will be published occasionally, and is aimed at keeping decision-makers in both the public and private sectors informed; as well as scholars, laymen and the interested public. This series undergoes a peer-review process.
2021/80 “The Importance of Export Diversification for Developing ASEAN Economies” by Phi Minh Hong
2021 NO. 80
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Southeast Asian economies have a higher degree of export diversification than those in other developing regions. The region’s upper-middle-income (UMI) economies diversify their export partners and products more than the lower-middle-income (LMI) ones, except for Vietnam, which has succeeded in expanding exports across products and destinations. The more countries diversify their exports, the […]
2021/79 “Ethnic Armed Organisations in Post-Coup Myanmar: New Conversations Needed” by Andrew Ong
2021 No. 79
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The increasingly widespread attacks on Tatmadaw troops by resistance forces across Myanmar have given rise to suggestions of a descent into civil war, with Ethnic Armed Organisations (EAOs) touted as a “wild card” that might decide the country’s fate. However, talk of a Federal Army and comparisons to the Syrian civil war are […]
2021/78 “Commanding Right and Forbidding Wrong: The Rising Influence of Muslim Mainstream Groups” by Syafiq Hasyim
2021 No. 77
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The banning of FPI (Front Pembela Islam) in December 2020 may have reduced the incidence of vigilante actions taken to enforce Islamic laws and norms in Indonesia. But this belies the fact that mainstream Muslim organisations such as Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) and Muhammadiyah, as well as the Indonesian Ulama Council (MUI), have increasingly […]
2021/77 “ASEAN’s Climate Cooperation with China and the US: Challenges and Prospects” by Sharon Seah
2021 No. 77
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The US is back in the international climate cooperation game, but it has a lot to catch up on to make up for the last four years when it chose not to play. The biggest climate cooperation problem facing the Biden administration is the partisan divide in the US House of Representatives and […]
2021/76 “Thailand’s Malfunctioning Political Party Funding System” by Punchada Sirivunnabood
2021 No. 76
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY In 1988, Thailand adopted measures to provide state funding for the development of political parties through the Political Party Development Fund. The fund is a double-edged sword. While it provides subsidies for the development of political parties, it also enables small and new parties to maximize their funding by setting up inactive branches […]
2021/75 “Vietnam’s Evolving Regulatory Framework for Fintech” by Dang Linh Chi and Pham Mai Nhu Thuy
2021 No. 75
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The Vietnamese government is encouraging financial technology or fintech to promote a cashless society and extensive financial inclusion in the country. The fintech market is subject to multiple regulations issued by the State Bank of Vietnam for finance matters and the Ministry of Public Security (MPS) for data privacy and cybersecurity matters. The […]
2021/74 “A Rising China Affects Ethnic Identities in Southeast Asia” by Leo Suryadinata
2021 No. 74
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY From Zhou Enlai to Deng Xiaoping, Beijing’s policy towards Chinese overseas was luodi shenggen (to take local roots), which encouraged them to take local citizenship and integrate themselves into local society. In the 21st century, following the rise of China, this policy changed with a new wave of xinyimin (new migrants). Beijing advocated […]
2021/73 “Political Parties’ Manoeuvring after the Jokowi-Prabowo Rapprochement” by Max Lane
2021 No. 73
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The rapprochement of Jokowi and Prabowo has resulted in the unusual absence of a polarising rivalry among the main political parties. There are also no fundamental differences among parties over major policy questions. The fractured nature of the Indonesian socio-political elite is instead reflected in the proliferation of small parties. This results in […]
2021/72 “Lending Apps in Vietnam: Facebook Groups Offer Guidance, Comfort and Contention to Borrowers in Jeopardy” by Nicolas Lainez, Thu Phuong To, and Bui Thi Thu Doai
2021 NO. 72
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Vietnam’s digital subprime lending industry is rapidly growing amidst public concern for reckless lending and aggressive and unregulated debt collection practices. Disgruntled, harassed and vengeful digital borrowers express their discontent about predatory lending apps on social media platforms including Facebook groups. These Facebook groups function as: a) forums where members coalesce for guidance […]
2021/71 “Vietnam’s Tentative Approach to Regional Infrastructure Initiatives” by Do Mai Lan and Hoang Oanh
2021 No. 71
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Vietnam’s Socio-Economic Development Plan 2021-2030 highlights infrastructure development as one of the three strategic breakthroughs. However, financing for infrastructure development remains constrained. State resources fund approximately 90 per cent of the country’s infrastructure projects, and mobilising private capital has proven difficult. There are currently many foreign-financed connectivity initiatives in the region, such as […]