Asia Regional Integration Center

Agenda

“Promoting Innovation and Inclusion for a Prosperous Asia” was the theme of the 2014 Forum.

The forum focused on two development issues that are of high significance to developing Asia: innovation and inclusion. Participating think tanks discussed regional economic integration, tackling the threats and opportunities presented by the various trading blocs on the developing countries, and related topics.

In February 2014, ADB’s Call for Papers resulted in the selection and preparation of 16 Research Papers for presentation at the forum.

The two-day forum had four major sessions delving on the various facets of innovation and inclusion. The forum had both plenary and parallel sessions to provide more time for discussion and sharing of knowledge/experiences among the participating think tanks. The four major sessions were organized, as follows:

• Session 1. Opening Ceremonies

  Opening Ceremonies was in plenary.

  Moderator: Taejong Kim, Professor, KDI School of Public and Management

  • 09:30 - 09:35
    Welcome Remarks
    Joon-Kyung Kim, President, Korea Development Institute
    Juzhong Zhuang, Deputy Chief Economist, Economics and Research Department, ADB
  • 09:40
    Keynote address
    Hyung-Hwan Joo, First Vice Minister, Ministry of Strategy and Finance
  • 10:00
    Photo session and coffee break
  • 10:30
    Key Indicators for Asia and the Pacific 2014 — Poverty in Asia: A Deeper Look
    Juzhong Zhuang, Deputy Chief Economist, Economics and Research Department, ADB
  • 11:00
    Open discussion
  • 11:15
    New Directions for a Rapidly Maturing Miracle Economy: The Case of Korea
    Wonhyuk Lim, Executive Director, Center for Regulatory Studies, Korea Development Institute
  • 11:45
    Open discussion
  • 12:00
    Lunch Break

• Session 2A. Opportunities and Challenges of Globalization and Regional Integration in Asia

  The second session comprised of two parallel sessions; had five presentations covering regional economic structures, processing trade and the public-private partnership, among others.

  Moderators: Rathin Roy, Director, National Institute of Public Finance Policy

  Rethy Kieth Chhem, Executive Director, Cambodia Development Resource Institute

  • 13:30
    East Asian Economies, Regional Economic Structure and the Emerging Regional Trade Regimes: TPP and RECP
    Xiaoming Huang, Professor and Director, New Zealand Contemporary China Research Centre
  • 13:50
    Open discussion
  • 14:10
    Development of China’s Processing Trade and Employment
    Guoqiang Long, Vice Minister, Development Research Center of the State Council
  • 14:30
    Open discussion
  • 14:50
    Enjoying the Fruits of their Labor: Redirecting Asian Exports to Asian Consumers
    Willem Thorbecke, Senior Fellow, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry
  • 15:10
    Open discussion
  • 15:30
    Coffee/tea break
  • 16:00
    Lao PDR’s Joining ASEAN Economic Communities by and after 2015: Opportunities and Challenges
    Leeber Leebouapao, Director General, National Economic Research Institute
  • 16:20
    Open discussion
  • 16:40
    The Practice and Experience of PPP in China
    Qiangwu Zhou, Deputy Director-General, Asia-Pacific Finance Development Center Beijing Office
  • 17:00
    Open discussion
  • 17:20
    **Informal exchange / Networking**
  • 18:30
    Dinner at Intercontinental Seoul Coex Hotel, Jupiter Room (30/F)

• Session 2B. Innovation and Escaping the Middle Income Trap

  The second session had five presentations focusing on innovation such as entrepreneurial propensity, overcoming the middle-income trap and the chaebol and industrial policy, among others.

  Moderators: Derek Brien, Executive Director, Pacific Institute of Public Policy

  Nonarit Bisonyabut, Research Fellow, Thailand Development Research Institute

  • 13:30
    An Exploratory Cross-Country Analysis of the Relationship between Entrepreneurial Propensity and Income Inequality
    Poh Kam Wong, Director, NUS Entrepreneurship Centre and Professor, NUS Business School
  • 13:50
    Open discussion
  • 14:10
    Malaysia’s Structural Issues in Overcoming Middle Income Trap: Decomposition Analysis of Output Growth 1991-2005
    Zakariah Bin Abdul Rashid, Executive Director, Malaysian Institute for Economic Research
  • 14:30
    Open discussion
  • 14:50
    Industrial and Innovation Policies to Escape from the Middle-Income Trap: Cases of Uruguay and Malaysia
    Alibek Konkakov, Analyst, Economic Research Institute
  • 15:10
    Open discussion
  • 15:30
    Coffee/tea break
  • 16:00
    Does Innovation Mediate Good Firm Performance? Some Findings from Philippines Small and Medium Enterprises
    Gilberto Llanto, President, Philippine Institute of Development Studies
  • 16:20
    Open discussion
  • 16:40
    Chaebol and Industrial Policy in Korea
    Wonhyuk Lim, Executive Director, Center for Regulatory Studies, Korea Development Institute
  • 17:00
    Open discussion
  • 17:20
    **Informal exchange / Networking**
  • 18:30
    Dinner at Coex Intercontinental Hotel, Jupiter Room (30/F)

• Session 3A. Inclusive Growth and Social Protection

  The third session had four presentations on growth-employment relationship, inclusive growth in emerging market economies and social protection, among others.

  Moderator: Zaw Oo, Executive Director, Myanmar Development Resource Institute

  • 08:00
    Registration
  • 08:30
    Why Growth Isn’t Getting the Job Done: An Analysis of the Growth–Employment Relationship in India
    Radhicka Kapoor, Consultant, Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations
  • 08:50
    Open discussion
  • 09:10
    Fiscal Space for Inclusive Growth in Emerging Market Economies
    Rathin Roy, Director, National Institute for Public Finance Policy
  • 09:30
    Open discussion
  • 09:50
    Social Protection For Small-Scale Agriculture — Evidences From Viet Nam Tran
    Tran Kim Chung, Vice President, Central Institute for Economic Management
  • 10:10
    Open discussion
  • 10:30
    Coffee/tea break
  • 10:40
    Effective Social Protection for Various Scenarios of Economic and Social Transformations of Uzbekistan
    Kamila Mukhamedkhanova, Researcher, Center for Economic Research
  • 11:00
    Open discussion

• Session 3B. Addressing Property and Inequality

  The third session had four presentations on the concept and measure of poverty, impact of remittance and rural non-farm economy, among others.

  Moderator: Dushni Weerakoon, Deputy Director, Institute of Policy Studies of Sri Lanka

  • 08:00
    Registration
  • 08:30
    Alternative Concept and Measure of Poverty in Indonesia
    Carunia Mulya Hamid Firdausy, Director, National Research Centre for Economics, LIPI
  • 08:50
    Open discussion
  • 09:10
    The Impact of Remittance on Poverty and Inequality: Evidence Using Data on Labour Migration in Nepal
    Ram Chandra Dhakal, Executive Director, Centre for Economic Development and Administration, Tribhuvan University
  • 09:30
    Open discussion
  • 09:50
    The Rural Non-farm Economy, Livelihood Strategies and Household Welfare in Rural Pakistan
    Shujaat Farooq, Researcher Economist, Pakistan Institute of Development Economics
  • 10:10
    Open discussion
  • 10:30
    Coffee/tea break
  • 10:40
    Sustained National Deworming Campaign in South Korea
    Taejong Kim, Professor, KDI School of Public Policy and Management
  • 11:00
    Open discussion

• Session 4. Asian Think Tank Networking Sustaining the ADB—Asian Think Tanks Network

  Being the last session prior to the closing of the forum, the fourth session was in plenary.

  Moderator: Juzhong Zhuang, Deputy Chief Economist, Economics and Research Department, ADB

  • 11:30
    Updates and Action Planning
    Dongxiang Li, Advisor, Regional and Sustainable Development Department, ADB
  • 12:30
    Lunch break
  • 14:00-17:30
    Informal Networking Activity (Tour of Seoul’s cultural attractions)