Asia Regional Integration Center

ARIC - Project Leader James Villafuerte drew from a regional economic analysis of ASEAN from his work at ADB and painted an ASEAN with countries that are in different states of readiness. He took part as one of the speakers at the 'Undertanding ASEAN, Part 1: ASEAN Identity' held 14 August in Makati City, Philippines. Read more.

The report ASEAN Community 2015: Managing Integration for Better Jobs and Shared Prosperity examines the impact of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) on labor markets using economic model simulations. It highlights the challenges and opportunities that will accompany the AEC, including managing labor migration, boosting productivity and wages, improving job quality, and supporting the required structural changes and regional cooperation. The report also offers policy recommendations for creating better jobs and ensuring that the benefits of the AEC are equitably shared. Read more.

ARIC releases August 2014 issue of its monthly newsletter, RCI Chat. It tracks regional cooperation and integration news in Asia focusing on cross-border infrastructure, trade and investment, money and finance, and regional public goods. This issue includes a feature on CAREC program's Senior Officials Meeting highlights. Subscribe.

Free trade agreements (FTAs) in Asia and the Pacific continue to grow rapidly. With only 55 FTAs in 2000, there are now 278 FTAs in various stages of development as of July 2014. Of these FTAs, 119 are in force while the rest are either proposed, under negotiation, or signed. Go to FTA database.

ARIC releases the maiden issue of its monthly newsletter, RCI Chat. It tracks regional cooperation and integration news in Asia focusing on cross-border infrastructure, trade and investment, money and finance, and regional public goods. This issue includes a feature on the SASEC program. Subscribe.

David Roland-Holst, professor, University of California at Berkeley is speaking on RCI's potential to promote more sustained and inclusive growth in Asia and the Pacific, including the role of policies at the national and regional levels. See program.

This issue updates the 2014 and 2015 GDP growth and inflation projections for ADB's Pacific developing member countries -  from those presented earlier in Asian Development Outlook 2014 -  and explores the Pacific region’s job creation challenges. Read more.

With the ongoing financial development and integration in Asia, it is important to ensure that the benefits of integration outweigh its costs. In this paper, T.H. Ng and D. Yarcia analyzes whether the degree of risk-sharing in East Asia has improved along with the observed rise in integration. Read more.