About
The Asia-Pacific Regional Cooperation and Integration Index (ARCII) is a broad-based, multidimensional measure of regional integration. It was initially developed in 2017 and its methodology and applications gradually expanded. The composite index measures progress on a set of relevant dimensions of regional integration, and identifies strengths and weaknesses within regional, subregional, and national contexts.
Baseline framework
In 2017, Huh and Park conceptualized and implemented a six-dimensional framework with 26 indicators to construct a composite index that measures different aspects of regional integration. The main objective of producing the metric was to help countries better gauge the level of regional integration.
Out of the 26 indicators, 24 are bilateral data expressed as a country’s regional activity relative to its global activity. The ARCII, therefore, uses the most comprehensive bilateral set of available indicators of regional integration. The index covers Asian Development Bank (ADB) member countries in Asia, which include 46 developing member economies along with Japan, Australia, and New Zealand.
The Enhanced ARCII Framework
The baseline index structure was strengthened to accommodate new approaches to the measurement of regional cooperation and integration (RCI) in Asia. The six-dimensional baseline framework is further improved with the addition of two new dimensions: (1) technology and digital connectivity, and (2) environmental cooperation.
To ensure that the ARCII dimensions adequately capture the underlying regional cooperation and integration dynamics, new indicators were also incorporated into existing dimensions. The enhanced system includes 42 indicators, and each dimension has either 5 or 6 indicators.
Updating the framework with new relevant indicators permits a better understanding of the role of technology and the environment in promoting a region’s interconnectedness. The technology and digital connectivity dimension naturally respond to the growing role of digital technologies in economic activity, which had not been fully captured in other dimensions. It also aims to reflect regional progress in research and technological exchange. To further improve the index, the environmental cooperation dimension provides a basis for assessing performance in the context of regional cooperation by including information on trade in environmental goods, environmental agreements, ecological footprint, and environmental health scores.
The Global Integration Index
Global interconnectedness has increased in the past 2 decades, propelled by fast-paced developments in technology and greater mobility in goods, services, capital, and labor. Deepening of interdependencies has reshaped cross-border channels of cooperation, with some economies embedding global integration efforts in their industrial and economic policies.
The Global Integration Index (GII) aims to better capture the increasingly complex dimensions of globalization. As well as adding the two new dimensions (technology and digital connectivity, and the environment), new indicators have been included in existing areas of the six-dimensional baseline. The infrastructure and connectivity dimension now includes indicators on services trade, value-added, international flight passengers, cultural goods trade, and trademark applications. Expansion from 25 to 43 indicators also means that the GII offers a larger scope than other peer indexes. Finally, 15 new economies from the Middle East region are included, bringing the number of economies covered to 173. The table below compares the main features of the previous and new global integration index.
| GEII (IEII): Huh and Park (2021) | GII (RII) | |
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| Economy coverage |
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| Dimension and indicator coverage |
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| Normalization method |
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| Methodology |
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