Southeast Asians classified as poor and low-income shared a high 44.7% of the region’s population, or 306 million of a total of 686 million. Social inequalities are similarly endemic in Southeast Asia, as reflected in the distribution of incomes across seven categories—poor, low income, lower middle, middle, upper middle, upper income and rich (see Table...
Category: Economy
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The unrest in Indonesia is driven by inequalities and entrenched oligarchic rule
Indonesia has been ravaged by its worst popular unrest since the downfall of the dictator Suharto in 1998. Large-scale street protests began last Aug. 25 in the capital Jakarta—the culmination of widespread economic frustration and anger at widespread corruption, democratic regression, gross inequalities, and the indifference and lack of empathy of Indonesia’s leaders, elite classes...
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The employment impact of a national ban on single-use plastic will be manageable
Negotiations for an international plastics treaty ended in failure last month, setting the stage for a new round of talks. Nevertheless, local environmental groups argue that no deal is better than a bad one or a watered-down treaty. An agreement could have nudged the Philippine government to finally enact a national ban on single-use plastic...
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Southeast Asian social protection systems have an erratic record and ignore informal work
Social protection refers to a set of policies and programs designed to reduce poverty, inequality, vulnerability, and social exclusion, and to mitigate economic shocks by ensuring income security, access to essential services (e.g., health, education, and housing), and support for life’s hazards (e.g., unemployment, sickness, disability, and old age). In Southeast Asia, social protection systems have a...
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The delusional promises of the Asean 2045 Roadmap
At the 46th Summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) last May, leaders adopted what appears to be a landmark document, the Kuala Lumpur Declaration on Asean 2045: Our Shared Future. The declaration sets a 20-year roadmap to transform Asean into “a resilient, innovative, dynamic, and people-centered community.” It further emphasizes “regional solidarity,...
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Donald Trump’s brutal tariff assaults on Southeast Asia
As of Aug. 1, US President Donald Trump has finalized a sweeping set of new and brutal trade tariffs on Southeast Asian countries after a series of bilateral negotiations with the region’s leaders and trade representatives. These tariffs reflect an increasing trend toward protectionism and moving away from free trade principles and practices. The tariffs...
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Take the ‘Trump tariffs’ to the local levels and to the May elections, economist says
How can the Philippines cope with the unpredictability of US President Donald Trump, who has upended the rules-based global trading system with a tariff war he is waging against scores of countries? “We cannot predict what Trump will be doing next [during his second four-year term]. We can’t rely on the US to maintain rules-based...
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As Bulacan airport project advances, salt farmers fear loss of livelihood
BULAKAN, Bulacan—In the waning heat of the day, 57-year-old Reneboy Ybañez would begin raking salt from clay-lined salt ponds in Barangay San Nicolas in Bulakan town. By 3 p. m., most of the seawater in the ponds had evaporated, leaving salt crystals that he and the other workers would harvest. Reneboy and his wife May,...
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Forced to move, coastal communities in Bacoor struggle with relocation
(Last of two parts) Bert Cabornay, who at 56 has been fishing for three decades, used to farm clams and mussels in the area now occupied by the Manila-Cavite Expressway or Cavitex. Forced to move farther out, he now takes 20 minutes in his boat to reach his mussel farm in Bacoor Bay. Building his...
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Bacoor rezones waters for reclamation, reducing fishing grounds
(First of two parts) While he still can, Bert Cabornay continues to fish in the sea off Bacoor City, Cavite. He rows farther than usual, towards clearer waters and away from his mussel farm that is barely operating. Cabornay, 56, noticed in 2020 that the waters around his farm had become turbid. It was during...