Indonesia Jokowi Inaugurated for Second Term (20 Oct) Indonesian President Joko Widodo “Jokowi” was sworn in for a second term on Sunday, 20 October. He had won 55.5% of the vote in the April election, 11% more than his opponent, Prabowo Subianto. At the inauguration ceremony...
By Simon Tay Despite sceptics – most notably US President Donald Trump – people today are increasingly concerned about climate change and calling for action. Governments are responding, with some 60 world leaders gathered for the climate summit last month (Sept). Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong...
Sustainable finance and environmental-social-governance (ESG) standards are starting to gain traction in Singapore. In 2015, the Association of Banks in Singapore released its Guidelines on Responsible Financing, requiring banks to incorporate ESG criteria in lending and risks assessments. In 2017, the ESG Integration Results of...
Resource Sector Indonesia Finds One-Fifth of Palm Oil Plantations Are Illegal (10 - 11 Oct) Last year President Joko Widodo issued a ban on new permits for palm plantations for three years, aiming to protect the country's forests. The order also gave the government authority to review...
On 3 October, we held a talk with Ms. Li Xueying, Enterprise Editor, The Straits Times and Dr. Steven Cochrane, Chief APAC Economist, Moody's Analytics, examining the implications of the protests in Hong Kong. The session was moderated by SIIA Chairman Simon Tay. In 2014, the...
Hong Kong’s Protests: Economic Damage and Long-Term Implications On 3 October 2019, we held a talk with Ms. Li Xueying, Enterprise Editor, The Straits Times and Dr. Steven Cochrane, Chief APAC Economist, Moody's Analytics, examining the implications of the protests in Hong Kong. The session was...
Indonesia Protests Continue as Jokowi Considers His Next Move (26 Sep – Ongoing) Jakarta and other cities across Indonesia continued to experience violent protests as tens of thousands of students and other groups clashed with police. These rallies were the biggest of their kind since the...
The 2019 protests in Hong Kong have proven longer and even more divisive than the city's last brush with civil disobedience, the Umbrella Movement protests five years ago. In 2014, Hong Kong's economy was barely affected by the demonstrations, despite widespread predictions of doom. Trade,...
ASEAN faces a long-standing challenge with the lack of good quality, adequate infrastructure. Governments need to meet the demand for infrastructure brought about by population growth and urbanisation, yet the rate of public sector financing for infrastructure development is unsustainable. Government financing accounts for 90...
By Nicholas Fang For TODAY The recent renewal of a defence agreement by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and United States President Donald Trump in New York has a number of ramifications. To be sure, the extension of the terms of the Memorandum of Understanding Regarding United States’ Use...