In Asia: Weekly Insight and Features from Asia

Last week in Nay Pyi Taw, H.E. U Zin Yaw, Myanmar’s Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Asia Foundation President David Arnold signed an MOU marking the Foundation’s expansion of programs to support Myanmar’s democratic transition and plans to re-establish a resident office in the country. The Foundation also announced the appointment of Dr. Kim [...]

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Just months before Mongolia prepares for its 6th Presidential Elections on June 26, the capital, Ulaanbaatar, hosted thousands of delegates from over 100 countries for the 7th Ministerial Conference of the Community of Democracies. Among the impressive list of influential guests…

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Against the background of Mongolia’s famous blue sky, around 1,215 delegates from 104 countries gathered in Ulaanbaatar to participate in the 7th Ministerial Conference of the Community of Democracies (CD) from April 27- 29, 2013, organized under Mongolia’s Presidency of the CD, which started in July 2011.

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Driving from the airport down the gridlocked streets of Yangon – with people of all ages going about their business in patterned longyis – it’s hard not to notice the dozens of billboards jutting out at eye level advertising web services and brand name mobile devices. Though mobile and internet penetration rates are still very low (no higher than four and two percent, respectively, of Burma’s 50 million people), senior leadership in the government, NGOs, and the private sector is increasingly focused on improving the country’s existing technology infrastructure. These collective efforts to loosen censorship laws, extend telecommunications licenses to foreign operators, and develop new legal frameworks for eGovernment and information and communications technology (ICT) are likely to not only ramp up mobile penetration rates, but also bring greater access to information for Burma’s citizens.

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Read about The Asia Foundation’s brand-new partnership with Beyond Access, an international coalition of organizations funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation that draws attention to libraries that are powering development in their communities, and helps to strengthen their capacity through training and technical assistance. The Foundation recently participated in a Beyond Access needs [...]

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Democratic transition in Burma (also known as Myanmar) has, despite ongoing violent ethnic conflicts, been surprisingly rapid and encouraging. The world is watching in anticipation to see whether these developments will result in greater political participation and economic opportunity for the nation’s people.

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Democratic transition in Burma/Myanmar has so far been peaceful, rapid, and encouraging. The world is watching in anticipation to see whether these developments will result in greater political participation and economic opportunity for the nation’s people. On April 2 at California State University in Sacramento, Asia Foundation President David Arnold joins the University’s distinguished experts, [...]

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A delegation from The Asia Foundation, Electronic Information for Libraries (EIFL), and International Research and Exchanges Board (IREX) spent time in Burma (also known as Myanmar) last week to hear from citizens and representatives from government, civil society, and libraries…

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On February 26, leading foreign affairs experts will participate in a panel discussion, co-sponsored by The Asia Foundation along with host Asia Society of Northern California, on the rise of Asia, America’s pivot to Asia, and what this means for the U.S. and countries in the region.

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For Southeast Asia, 2012 brought both challenges and opportunities to the region – from Cambodia’s chairmanship of ASEAN and further political opening in Burma (also known as Myanmar) to tensions in the South China Sea and the adoption of the ASEAN Declaration of Human Rights (ADHR).

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