It has been a long time since the phrase ”The 21st century is the age of Asia” is widely said. Although the front-runners like Japan, China and South Korea are still growing, there are signs of decline. On the other hand, these ASEAN countries are hot and young and are described as ”The 21st century is the age of ASEAN.”

[Hot]
Recently the ASEAN region is described to be the post-China, or China +One (China plus one). Western corporations are agressively relocating their factories to Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia and other countries from China, as developed Asian counties are also transferring their businesses to the ASEAN countries.
History tells us that an economic growth starts from agriculturalization to industrialization and then commercialization. Commercialization is the pillar of earning profit and it is necessary to go through commercialization in an economic growth. For an example, AEON has been creating large-scale malls in the ASEAN countries, and this is because the population in the region exceeds 600 million and it is expected to rise. Companies from developed countries are relocating their businesses to the ASEAN countries in search of cheaper labor, and the population is large and the foundation for commercialization is at place. Therefore, you can say the ASEAN is hot.

[Young]
Population pyramids in the ASEAN countries tell us that people younger than 30 years old make up more than 60% of the total population in almost every ASEAN country, except for Singapore which has become a developed nation. Also, the population is growing in ever country. The first 'young' element is the fact that there are many young people and those countries are active. The second element is that the economy is young. While there are various issues in ASEAN countries, they have resolved their own issues and have been growing at their own pace. However, these days the ten ASEAN countries have started to grow together, removing many obstacles. It is expected that they will develop their economies at an unforseeable rate by establishing their own economic region and accepting foreign investment.

By taking a good look at the ASEAN countries in the spotlight we consider and advocate concrete solutions for various economic, technological and social issues in each country and contribute to further development. Especially, we believe that the last fontier in Asia, such as Cambodia, Myanmar and Laos, is worthy of attention.

Research Center for New Asian Development
XX XX, Chairman of Board