IN ASIA

The 2018 Chatham House International Policy Forum convened last week at a time of international angst. Two British cabinet ministers had resigned over Brexit negotiations, creating more uncertainty around the tenure of Prime Minister May. President Trump’s contentious meeting with NATO officials sparked questions about the U.S. commitment to that i… Read more

Female participation in the legal sector has increased dramatically in Afghanistan since the fall of the Taliban regime in 2001, but fundamental legal and gender reforms have yet to truly take root in the country. Afghan society’s strict segregation of the sexes, and a shortage of female legal professionals, makes it difficult for women to seek red… Read more

Traditional classrooms in ASEAN countries are exceptional for turning out high-performing students, well-skilled in memorization, recitation, and deference to seniority, an approach some say doesn’t equip students for a dynamic, entrepreneurial, and rapidly changing world. According to the World Economic Forum, young people will best succeed in the… Read more

The success of democratic governance in Afghanistan is threatened by Afghans’ declining sense of personal safety, particularly when expressing opinions in public. Because there is a direct link between perceived safety, willingness to speak freely in public, and the decision to vote, the government must find ways to address this insecurity for democratic elections and representative government to succeed in Afghanistan.

Pakistan receives average rainfall of not more than 250mm per year, making it one of the most arid and most water-stressed countries on the planet. A 2016 WaterAid report estimates Pakistan’s annual water availability at 1,017 cubic meters per person, compared to 5,000 cubic meters per person in 1950. If current trends continue, the Pakistan Council of Research in Water Resources warns, Pakistan will find itself at absolute water scarcity by 2025.

Despite rapid economic growth, conflict has persisted in many parts of Asia. Peacebuilding efforts have often focused on the role that Western nations or multilateral bodies can play in supporting statebuilding to build peace. South-South cooperation emphasizes supporting peacebuilding efforts in partner countries by drawing on a country’s own relevant experience.

Asia Foundation trustee Tim Kochis in A&S Marquette Magazine In his wide-ranging career, Asia Foundation Trustee Tim Kochis has been a nationally prominent wealth manager and strategic consultant, a six-time author, a philanthropist, and an educator. At U.C. Berkeley, where he cofounded the university’s personal financial planning program, an a… Read more

Like so many citizens in countries facing shrinking economic opportunities at home, many Nepalis have sought employment abroad, and international labor migration has become an accepted avenue for economic growth, both for the individual and for the nation. Nepal’s political and socioeconomic systems are in a period of transition, and the country is… Read more

The stunning, 2017 electoral defeat of Jakarta’s popular, non-Muslim governor, and his subsequent imprisonment for blasphemy, caught most Indonesians off guard. Indonesia was built on the premise of pluralism, writes Asia Foundation country director Sandra Hamid, and appeals to Islam had been largely ineffective in past elections. But as politician… Read more

In October 2016, The Asia Foundation’s Sri Lanka office began a project to make that country’s formal justice system more responsive to victims of sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV). Seventeen months later, and after five decades of working with security and justice institutions and promoting women’s rights in Sri Lanka, here are our insights… Read more