Demographic Transitions in Southeast Asia: Reframing How We Think and Act about Ageing
REGIONAL ECONOMIC STUDIES PROGRAMME
About the Webinar
Population ageing is a defining trend of the 21st century and Southeast Asian (SEA) region is experiencing intense demographic changes. Although countries in SEA are heterogenous in their demographic profiles, none of them is spared from ageing.
Population ageing could be a sign of longer lives and healthier old ages, but demographic transitions could be a ticking time bomb and disastrous if countries fail to invest in time of becoming old. SEA countries, which are in different demographic transitions, face different challenges, from creating enough good jobs and building competitive human capital to building institutions that are conducive to old-age savings and transfers.
In this webinar, two speakers, Professor Thanh-Long Giang from National Economic University and Oxford Institute of Population Ageing, and Professor Reuben Ng from National University of Singapore will be speaking about demographic transitions in Southeast Asia drawing on experiences from Vietnam and Singapore: how ready countries in the region are, the changing contexts in which ageing is taking place such as climate change and technological advancement, and how we should reframe how we think and act about ageing. The two speakers will bring in country experiences including in key policy areas of pension and social insurance systems, productivity-led economic growth, maintaining the social well-being of the older persons, immigration policies, and regional cooperation.
About the Speakers
Thanh-Long Giang is currently a Professor at National Economics University; a Research Fellow at Thang Long University; and a Senior Researcher at Institute of Social and Medical Studies (ISMS); an Affiliate Research Fellow of Oxford Institute of Population Ageing at the University of Oxford (UK); and an Affiliate Senior Researcher at Menzies Institute of Medical Research at the University of Tasmania (Australia).
Prof. Long’s research interests include the labor economics and social insurance. His research outcomes have been published widely, including Asian Economic Journal; Asia Pacific Economic Literature; Development and Change; International Social Science Journal; and Social Science and Medicine.
Prof. Long was a member of the drafting team for the Vietnam’s Social Protection Strategy 2011-2020; a key member of taskforce and research group for reforming social assistance system in Vietnam 2017-2021 and social insurance reforms in 2017-2025 with a vision to 2050, both were under Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs (MOLISA).
He earned a MA degree in public policy from Hitotsubashi University, Japan; a PhD degree in public policy from National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies (GRIPS), Japan.
Reuben Ng is an Assistant Professor at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy and Lead Scientist at the Lloyd’s Register Foundation Institute for the Public Understanding of Risk, NUS. A behavioural and data scientist trained at NUS, Oxford and Yale, Reuben spent 16 years in government, consulting, and research. In government, he was in the Prime Minister’s Office driving evidence-based policymaking through data analytics and Singapore’s Smart Nation strategies. In consulting, he co-built the advanced analytics practice at a top firm, and implemented complex analytics capabilities across industries and functions. In research, he is an expert in ageism, social gerontology, quantitative social sciences, and credited with creating innovative techniques to measure societal perceptions that are applied to strategic policy communications. His work achieved international media coverage at The New York Times, The Guardian, The Washington Post, Forbes, BBC, and CNN. He delivers masterclasses on Blended Innovation that integrates Data Analytics, Behavioural Insights, and Design Thinking; and served on advisory boards in finance, defence, education and sustainability. Reuben is the first Singaporean and Oxonian to win the International Fulbright Science and Technology Award, and the first from Asia to be honoured with the prestigious Harkness Fellowship in Health Care Policy and Practice since its inception in 1925. Reuben was ranked in the top 2 per cent of scientists globally by Stanford in 2022.
Registration
This webinar will be delivered online entirely. You can join the webinar at the specified date and time using devices (computer, phone, or tablet) with internet connection.
Please register here to receive your unique link for joining the webinar.
If you have questions for the speakers, please key in your questions via the Q&A, stating your name and affiliation. The moderator will field them to the speaker during the Q&A session.