Showing 1 - 10 of 97
Green recovery
Asia focus, Pattama Kuentak, Published on 08/08/2022
» As the world emerges from Covid-19 and faces stagflation and war, climate crisis remains one of the greatest threats to humanity. A green recovery has become a priority for policymakers in Southeast Asia and around the world, who aim to create a more sustainable path that focuses on the environment, climate change and disaster preparedness.
New Asean-US era
Asia focus, Apiradee Treerutkuarkul, Published on 13/06/2022
» The special summit held last month in Washington between US President Joe Biden and nine Southeast Asian leaders clearly emphasised his administration's attempts to engage the region it sees as central to countering China's rising influence in Asia and beyond.
Post-pandemic healthcare
Asia focus, Published on 16/05/2022
» Health crises and emergencies such as Covid-19 have brought into sharp focus the critical need for preparedness. The unprecedented pandemic has led to a dynamically changing environment across the healthcare industry, posing challenges that call for innovative solutions.
Stumbling but hopeful
Asia focus, Pattama Kuentak, Published on 07/03/2022
» Domestic travellers have been the lifeline for tourism-reliant countries, especially in Southeast Asia, for the past two pandemic-battered years. But even as countries start scrapping restrictions to welcome international visitors back, some pandemic uncertainties persist and now a crisis in Ukraine threatens the global economic recovery as a whole.
Year of Turbulence
Asia focus, Asia Focus Team, Published on 27/12/2021
» Pandemic drags on recovery: In the early stages of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, many Asian countries had enviable success, avoiding large-scale outbreaks and mass deaths. But the arrival of the more transmissible Delta variant this year and sluggish vaccine rollouts compounded by low availability sent cases surging. Combined with poor monitoring and easy movement among countries, often unofficially, Southeast Asia became a virus hotspot. The ballooning health crisis collided with churning political discontent in the case of Myanmar, Thailand and Malaysia. Economically, the new wave of infections, and attendant restrictions imposed to curb the spread, stalled recoveries. After nearly two years of strict border controls, many countries started to loosen up and live with Covid. But the rise of the Omicron variant now threatens to scuttle those tentative reopening plans and usher in a third year of economic anxiety.
Unlocking potential in South Asia
Asia focus, Apiradee Treerutkuarkul, Published on 20/12/2021
» South Asia, home to nearly two billion people, has been among the fastest-growing regions in the world over the past decade. Yet intraregional trade is well below expected levels, suggesting that regional spillover from the growth of some individual countries has been limited.
Women's work
Asia focus, Paritta Wangkiat, Published on 18/10/2021
» Amid wave after wave of Covid-19 in Japan, Mariko, a college lecturer and mother, has been working and raising her four-year-old daughter in an apartment shared by a family of four in Tokyo.
Hydrogen belongs in Asean's energy mix
Asia focus, Brendan Boyle, Published on 13/09/2021
» Almost 20 years ago, I was at the forefront of the rapidly emerging hydrogen economy. As an engineering research fellow at the US Department of Energy, I was part of a team tasked with demonstrating low-carbon methods of producing the energy-dense gas suitable for large-scale production.
Extreme weather a wake-up call
Asia focus, Nareerat Wiriyapong, Published on 06/09/2021
» Waking up last Wednesday, I was surprised to see pictures of flooding on the Facebook page of my friend, whose house is not far from my place. I live on the eighth floor of a condo so I had no clue there was flooding in my neighbourhood, though it had been raining heavily when I went to bed.
Asean matters to America
Asia focus, W Audi Pattarapatumthong, Published on 30/08/2021
» The pandemic has been causing many parts of the world to drift away from each other amid distancing and lockdowns, but the US-Asean relationship is bucking the trend.