The World Bank considers financial inclusion to be an enabler for at least 7 of the 17 United Nation’s sustainable development goals (SDGs). Financial inclusion, with its associated policy implications, is an important issue for ASEAN. This book examines the economic effects of financial inclusion. It explores issues surrounding measurement and impact of financial inclusion. The book looks at various, salient topics including measurement of financial inclusion, the impact of (various indicators of) financial inclusion on development outcomes and macroeconomic volatility using aggregate data, as well as the effects of financial inclusion on poverty and development outcomes using micro data.

This book contains a medium-term (five-year) economic outlook for Southeast Asia, China and India.

Harmony has become a major challenge for modern governance in the twenty-first century because of the multi-religious, multi-racial and multi-ethnic character of our increasingly globalized societies. Governments all over the world are facing growing pressure to integrate the many diverse elements and subcultures which make up modern pluralistic societies. This book examines the idea of harmony, and its place in politics and governance, both in theory and practice, in Asia, the West and elsewhere. It explores and analyses the meanings, mechanisms, dimensions and methodologies of harmony as a normative political ideal in both Western and Asian philosophical traditions. The book argues that in Western political thought - which sees politics as primarily concerned with resolving social conflicts and protecting individual rights - the concept of harmony has often been neglected. In contrast, since earliest times harmony or ‘he’ has been a profound theme in Confucian thought, and current leaders of many East Asian governments, and the Chinese government, have explicitly declared that the realisation of a harmonious society is their aim. The book also assesses how harmony is pursued, jeopardized or deformed in the real world of politics, based upon empirical analysis of a variety of different cultural, social and political contexts, including: China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, Denmark, Latin America and the Scandinavian countries. It shows how harmony as an organizing concept can help to promote new thinking in governance, and overcome problems of modern-day governance like distrust, adversarial conflicts, hyper-individualism, coercive state intervention, and free-market alienation. It also discusses the potential problems posed by the pursuit of harmony, in particular in the grave threat of totalitarianism, and considers how these risks could best be mitigated.

The Chinese in Southeast Asia, with their growing economic clout, have been attracting attention from politicians, scholars and observers in recent decades. The rise of China as a global economic power and its profound influence over Southeast Asia has cast a spotlight on the role of Southeast Asian Chinese in the region''s economic relations with China.The Southeast Asian Chinese as an economic force and their growing importance with China are, to a certain extent, determined by the nature and development of their communities. This book uses a multifaceted approach to unravel the forces that helped to transform the communities in the past. Containing 17 papers written within a span of six and a half years, from 2000 to 2006, the book focuses on the social, economic and political aspects of these communities, with special emphasis on the Chinese in Malaysia and Singapore.

V.2 on CD-ROM includes: Rural finance in Azerbaijan -- Rural finance in Kazakhstan -- Rural finance in Kyrgyz Republic -- Rural finance in Mongolia -- Rural finance in Tajikistan -- Rural finance in Uzbekistan.

The Chinese in Southeast Asia, with their growing economic clout, have been attracting attention from politicians, scholars and observers in recent decades. The rise of China as a global economic power and its profound influence over Southeast Asia has cast a spotlight on the role of Southeast Asian Chinese in the region's economic relations with China.The Southeast Asian Chinese as an economic force and their growing importance with China are, to a certain extent, determined by the nature and development of their communities. This book uses a multifaceted approach to unravel the forces that helped to transform the communities in the past. Containing 17 papers written within a span of six and a half years, from 2000 to 2006, the book focuses on the social, economic and political aspects of these communities, with special emphasis on the Chinese in Malaysia and Singapore.

The book is an edited volume of different perspectives on the South Asian region and captures the political, social and economic challenges facing the region following the financial crisis and the region's responses to these challenges.

The characteristic feature of the recent Global Economic Crisis is the speed and extent of the shock transmission. The development of cross-national production networks in recent years has significantly deepened the economic interdependency between countries, and a shock that occurs in one region can be swiftly and extensively transmitted to the rest of the globe. The sudden contraction of world trade and output is a negative outcome of this intertwined global economic system. Based on the method known as international input-output analyses, this book provides a detailed examination of the mechanics of shock transmission by probing the labyrinth of complex supply networks among nations.

This book examines the experiences and good practices of ACLEDA Bank, Cambodia. Applicable to banks and microfinance institutions around the globe, it includes materials for classroom instruction on organizational development, financial sector development, the role of government and investors in supporting the financial market, and the benefits to customers. Following on the previous publication When There Was No Money, which tells the ACLEDA story by tracing its history and various stages of organizational development in the financial sector as it evolved in Cambodia from 1991 to 2004, this book examines the 2nd decade in the bank’s history, including its expansion to Lao PDR and Myanmar, and the launch of subsidiaries, such as ACLEDA Securities and the ACLEDA Institute of Business. Adopting a documentary approach, the book presents case studies supported by current economic and financial literature, as well as stories from a wide range of interviews with the board, management, staff, customers, competitors and regulators. Given its scope, the book offers a valuable resource for financial institutions, investors, researchers and students interested in financial inclusion, financial sector development, good governance of financial institutions, microfinance, aid effectiveness, post-conflict organizational development, and Cambodia.

This issue of Development Asia discusses the post-2015 development agenda and its implications for Asia and the Pacific. The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) have served humanity well. They galvanized global attention for helping the world's poor and vulnerable. In less than 3 years, a new development agenda will take up the challenge of delivering a sustainable future for humanity. The successor goals will benefit from the MDG's focus. But they must accomplish much more in a world that has changed dramatically since the MDGs were conceived. A global conversation is underway to frame the new goals. It's early days, but the vision is bold: a world without acute poverty, where the marginalized lead productive lives, and where economic growth doesn't strain the planet to breaking point. The goals will likely be universal, measurable, few in number, and easily understood. The developing world's strong voice in the consultation process is likely to result in goals that are both emphatic and far-reaching. The post-2015 development agenda, and the goals that will drive it, will be a moment of truth for the world. This issue of Development Asia goes further into these pivotal issues and their implications for Asia and the Pacific.