Asia's Developing Future

Thailand has been using tax policies to promote growth and encourage foreign investment. Some of those measures have succeeded but more attention needs to be paid to the revenue-raising side of the tax regime. Globalization has disrupted the way countries think about their tax regimes. In the past, the issue of double taxation was at the forefront, whether companies would have to pay tax in both their home country and in other countries where they had a presence. Today, the issue is whether they will be taxed at all. Read the transcript https://bit.ly/2BDVvoz Read the report https://www.adb.org/publications/tax-and-development-challenges-in-asia-pacific Read the chapter https://bit.ly/2J0RJb7 About the author Patricia Mongkhonvanit is deputy director-general of the Revenue Department of Thailand. Know more about ADBI’s work https://bit.ly/2DswkGU https://bit.ly/2FKtYVW

Increasing the use of property and income taxes in the People’s Republic of China won’t be popular, but it is necessary. Relying more on property and income tax will not only help the China government balance its budget but could smooth income inequality and limit unrestrained urban expansion. As countries develop, they tend to keep balance between indirect taxes such as a levy on goods and services and direct taxes on incomes and property. That allows the government to use tax policy to meet social or fiscal goals while raising money to invest in a social safety net. In China, direct taxes account for a much smaller percentage of total tax revenue than in member countries of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. In 2014, China raised 9.5% of its revenue through direct taxes, compared with 20.3% on average in OECD countries. Read the transcript https://bit.ly/2E6FSHU Read the report https://www.adb.org/publications/tax-and-development-challenges-in-asia-pacific Read the chapter https://bit.ly/2BNcR2h About the authors Jürgen Conrad headed the Asian Development Bank’s economics team in Beijing at the time this paper was written. Jian Zhuang is an economist at ADB’s Resident Mission in Beijing. Know more about ADBI’s work https://bit.ly/2DswkGU https://bit.ly/2FKtYVW

Postal savings banks should be developed as a key factor of the economies in emerging Asia. Building or rebuilding postal savings banks would help modernize and deepen financial systems that are still vulnerable to the whims of global capital flows, as well as provide financial services to citizens who lack access to them. A recent book published by the Asian Development Bank Institute, Postal Savings—Reaching Everyone in Asia, suggests using the success of postal savings banks in countries like Japan as an example for emerging countries in Asia. Read the transcript https://bit.ly/2GJC5lD Read the report https://www.adb.org/publications/postal-savings-reaching-everyone-asia About the author Anwar Nasution is an economist at the University of Indonesia in Jakarta. Know more about ADBI’s work https://bit.ly/2sQUSmI

The Bank of Japan’s ongoing purchases of Japanese stocks has warped the country’s equity markets. Every day it continues will make the eventual unwinding of those holdings harder, both for the central bank and for the markets themselves. In January 2013, the BOJ introduced a 2% price stability target in an effort to extract the country from more than a decade of stagnant or falling prices. That in itself was a rare move by a central bank. Sayuri Shirai of Japan’s Keio University explains. Read the transcript https://bit.ly/2WJldke Read the working paper https://www.adb.org/publications/boj-exchange-traded-fund-purchases-unprecedented-monetary-easing-policy About the author Sayuri Shirai is a professor at Japan’s Keio University and a visiting scholar at the Asian Development Bank Institute and served on the Bank of Japan’s monetary policy board from 2011 to 2016. Know more about ADBI’s work https://bit.ly/2GsYxyX

Postal savings banks can expand their financial services and bring them to more people, by using foreign remittances as a springboard. With $250 billion in remittances flowing into Asia every year, postal savings banks can provide cheaper and easier ways for people to access those funds and become one-stop-shops for financial services in Asia. That’s the suggestion of a recent book published by the Asian Development Bank Institute, Postal Savings – Reaching Everyone in Asia. Read the transcript https://bit.ly/2HGukPh Read the report https://www.adb.org/publications/postal-savings-reaching-everyone-asia About the author Hans Boon is chief executive officer of PostFinance Int’l Development, Amsterdam, a consultant for the World Bank and the International Fund for Agricultural Development, and a director of Eurogiro in Denmark. Know more about ADBI’s work https://bit.ly/2sQUSmI

Regulations need to be stronger, and their implementation needs to be simpler, to bring more small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) into Indonesia’s tax system. SMEs are an important and growing segment of Indonesia’s economy but they are under-represented when it comes to paying tax. In 2015, SMEs accounted for 60% of the country’s gross domestic product. The SME sector has been growing fast because the use of information technology and the promotion of creative industries have been adapted to local characteristics. Significant SME growth has taken place in fashion, food, advertising, interior design, and software development. Read the transcript https://bit.ly/2WaXZ6A Read the report https://www.adb.org/publications/tax-and-development-challenges-in-asia-pacific Read the chapter https://bit.ly/2GyqbM7 About the authors Wawan Juswanto was special advisor to the dean of ADBI and a senior economist in the Capacity Building and Training Department of ADBI at the time the book was written. Milson Febriyadi is a fiscal analyst in the Fiscal Policy Agency of the Ministry of Finance in Indonesia. Know more about ADBI’s work https://bit.ly/2DswkGU https://bit.ly/2FKtYVW

Postal savings banks have a better record than other financial institutions when it comes to giving women access to financial services. But even more could be done if countries expanded the use of postal savings banks, especially if postal authorities were to actively focus on services attractive to women. Studies have shown that household wealth and income increase when women have more access to financial services such as bank accounts. Research has also shown that increasing the ability of women to generate, save, and control income can improve child nutrition and schooling outcomes. Read the transcript https://bit.ly/2T3liNG Read the report https://www.adb.org/publications/postal-savings-reaching-everyone-asia About the author Smriti Rao is an associate professor of economics and global studies at Assumption College in the United States. Know more about ADBI’s work https://bit.ly/2sQUSmI

Growing populations of the overweight and obese are putting a multi-billion-dollar strain on health costs in developing countries and stifling economic growth. A new book by the Asian Development Bank Institute gathers analyses by economists, doctors, and public health experts on the issue. Overweight and Obesity in Asia and the Pacific: Trends, Costs, and Policies for Better Health was edited by Matthias Helble, ADBI’s co-chair of research at the time the book was published and now an economist at the Asian Development Bank headquarters in Manila, and Azusa Sato, a health specialist at the Asian Development Bank, in Manila. Read the transcript https://bit.ly/2HdOjVp Read the report https://www.adb.org/publications/wealthy-unhealthy-overweight-and-obesity-asia-and-pacific-trends-costs-and-policies About the authors Matthias Helble is an economist at the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in Manila. Azusa Sato is a health specialist also at ADB. Know more about ADBI’s work https://bit.ly/2SmLjH9 https://bit.ly/2SkFTN7 Watch the related video https://bit.ly/2RvoGnQ

Falling international energy prices, which are causing an economic crisis in the Russian Federation and some other countries in the region, are having major spillover effects on Central Asia. In the economy and financial sector of Tajikistan, remittances from workers have fallen sharply. Tajikistan covers some 141,000 square kilometers, with a population of about 9 million people. With a gross domestic product of about $7.0 billion—per capita about $800—it is one of the most remittance-dependent countries in the world. For several years it was number one in the world in remittances-to-GDP ratio in 2014, dropping to fourth place in 2016 because remittances from the crisis-affected Russian Federation declined. Read the transcript https://bit.ly/2SVDPLz Read the working paper https://www.adb.org/publications/financial-inclusion-regulation-literacy-education-tajikistan About the authors Roman Mogilevskii is associate director and senior research fellow at the Institute of Public Policy and Administration. Shokhboz Asadov is a senior research fellow also at the Institute of Public Policy and Administration, University of Central Asia. Know more about ADBI’s work https://bit.ly/2FCrKr2 https://bit.ly/2RykSly

The number of think tanks in Asia has grown over the last decade and many have become prominent. The 2017 Global Go To Think Tank Index Report records 1,676 think tanks in Asia as of December 2017, almost as many as the 1,872 in the United States, and gaining on the 2,045 that have set up in Europe. The report says there are about 8,000 think tanks globally. James McGann, the creator and editor of the report and director of the Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program at the University of Pennsylvania, credited the growth of think tanks to Asia’s economic progress, a better business environment, and policy makers’ need for advice on critical issues. Read the transcript https://bit.ly/2LWUAn9 Read more about the event https://www.adb.org/news/events/think-tanks-new-knowledge-policy-brokers-asia About the author James McGann is senior lecturer of international studies at the Lauder Institute and director of the Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program at the University of Pennsylvania. He is also the creator and editor of the annual Global Go To Think Tank Index. Know more about ADBI’s work https://bit.ly/2R6qWl9 https://bit.ly/2s9bBS0

Information is power, and that is true as India tries to solve its water crisis. In June 2018, the Government of India acknowledged that it is in the midst of the worst water crisis in the country’s history. By creating a tool that points out where exactly the government is lacking in managing water resources, India has armed itself with the power to fix the crisis. The move could not have come at a better time as poor water access and sanitation threaten people’s lives and livelihoods. Read the transcript https://bit.ly/2RzCVqV Read the blog https://www.asiapathways-adbi.org/2018/08/composite-water-management-index-a-pathway-to-solve-the-water-crisis-in-india/ About the author Nikhil Bugalia was an intern at the Asian Development Bank Institute and a PhD candidate at the University of Tokyo at the time the study was published. Know more about ADBI’s work https://bit.ly/2FkSxYQ https://bit.ly/2VDhdRR

With think tanks around the world now numbering 8,000 and counting, how do you pick the best among them? James McGann, senior lecturer of international studies at the Lauder Institute and director of the Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program at the University of Pennsylvania, identified four things a think tank must master. Read the transcript https://bit.ly/2QlU2Ym Read more about the event https://www.adb.org/news/events/think-tanks-new-knowledge-policy-brokers-asia About the author James McGann is senior lecturer of international studies at the Lauder Institute and director of the Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program at the University of Pennsylvania. He is also the creator and editor of the annual Global Go To Think Tank Index. Know more about ADBI’s work https://bit.ly/2R6qWl9 https://bit.ly/2s9bBS0

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations has a long-standing agreement to build and maintain rice reserves to deal with natural disasters and growing food insecurity among its 10 members. The rice reserves are effective, but more needs to be done to streamline funding of and access to the reserves to make sure relief arrives faster. An Asian Development Bank Institute study found that ASEAN member countries should speed up negotiation for, coordination of, and responses to requests for emergency food aid. Read the transcript https://bit.ly/2LOkf13 Read the policy brief https://www.adb.org/publications/building-food-security-asia-through-international-agreements-rice-reserves About the authors Kunmin Kim is a task manager at the Asian Development Bank Institute. Paula P. Plaza is a litigation lawyer at Angara Abello Concepcion Regala & Cruz Law Offices in the Philippines. Know more about ADBI’s work https://bit.ly/2Vsanyn https://bit.ly/2SzZIQy

How can private investors be persuaded to invest in public infrastructure – like new highways, railways, and dams? Many governments don’t want to incur further debt. And most politicians are reluctant to impose new or higher taxes on citizens who use the infrastructure. Institutional investors—such as pension funds—don’t generally see infrastructure as an attractive investment option. This is especially so in emerging economies with untried borrowers. Read the transcript https://bit.ly/2Rj8RPY Read the blog https://www.asiapathways-adbi.org/2017/05/kick-start-private-infrastructure-with-future-tax-sharing-bonds/ About the authors Naoyuki Yoshino is dean and chief executive officer of the Asian Development Bank Institute (ADBI) and professor emeritus at Keio University, Tokyo. Grant Stillman is legal advisor at ADBI. Know more about ADBI’s work https://bit.ly/2CyDzfH https://bit.ly/2SlQUxJ

Economic development can have significant health costs for growing numbers of overweight and obese people, as the example of Indonesia illustrates. This is what a new book by the Asian Development Bank Institute concludes. Overweight and Obesity in Asia and the Pacific: Trends, Costs, and Policies for Better Health gathers analyses by economists, doctors, and public health experts, including Matthias Helble, ADBI’s co-chair of research at the time the book was published and now an economist at the Asian Development Bank headquarters in Manila, and Toshiaki Aizawa, a PhD student at the University of York in the United Kingdom. They write that the growing numbers of overweight and obese people are one of the most pressing public health issues, particularly in developing countries, where almost two-thirds of the world’s obese people live. Read the transcript https://bit.ly/2rTEZLG Read the report https://www.adb.org/publications/wealthy-unhealthy-overweight-and-obesity-asia-and-pacific-trends-costs-and-policies About the authors Matthias Helble was co-chair of research at the Asian Development Bank Institute at the time the book was published and now an economist at ADB headquarters in Manila. Toshiaki Aizawa is a PhD student at the University of York in the United Kingdom. Know more about ADBI’s work https://bit.ly/2SmLjH9 https://bit.ly/2SkFTN7