Philippine outsourcing employment continues to grow despite fears of widespread AI-driven job losses. The challenge is to preserve entry-level opportunities and prepare workers before weaker hiring turns into a broader employment problem.
Author Archives: yeosiewhan
Thailand: An Economic Miracle in Need of an Encore
Thailand does not lack recommendations to improve its economic prospects. What it needs is sustained political commitments to turn plans into lasting change.
ASEAN’s Subsea Power Connectivity Ambition Needs a Jolt
ASEAN has ambitious plans to implement a regional power grid. But there is a critical need to improve technical and industrial capacity in subsea power systems.
Beneficiaries or Casualties? Hanoi’s Redevelopment and Political Legitimacy
The Communist Party of Vietnam must ensure that Hanoi’s redevelopment remains socially and politically inclusive, addressing community concerns that they are bearing the costs without sharing in the gains.
New Five Point Consensus Should Give Myanmar’s Resistance a Seat at the Table
It is not a given that the Tatmadaw will gain the upper hand in the civil conflict in Myanmar. A new consensus should include the resistance coalition.
The ‘Malay Unity’ Narrative: A Bridge Too Far?”
Some Malays are warming to the idea of re-establishing Malay-Islamic unity to retain the privileged position of the race in Malaysia. Given political rivalries among Malay political parties, this might be a bridge too far.
Malaysia’s Budget 2027: The Growing Divide in Federal-State Fiscal Transfers
There are clear reasons for allocating bigger grants to Sabah and Sarawak in Malaysia’s latest budget. But there is also a need to establish a more transparent and rules-based formula for distribution to the country’s various states.
Malaysia: Will Budget 2027 Brighten Anwar Ibrahim’s Electoral Prospects?
The Malaysian government’s latest budget contains several goodies for prospective voters. However, where the governing coalition’s general election performance is concerned, timing will be everything.
If AI Rules Must Wait, Southeast Asia Should Set the Terms
Giving companies time to comply with AI laws can be reasonable. The transition should clarify which records the institutions using these systems hold, what suppliers disclose, and who responds when a model changes or fails.
Transparency Needed as Southeast Asia Pushes Ahead on AI
Southeast Asians are divided over whether Artificial Intelligence (AI) helps or harms the environment. Regional governments should push data centres to be more transparent about how their operations impact the environment.