Why are some nations rich and others poor? Why do the citizens of some countries lead a happy, prosperous life while others struggle in terrible want?This book takes the reader through the eventful life journey of one of Singapore's best known economists and educators, Professor Lim Chong Yah. Born in Malacca, the author planted tapioca to feed himself and his family, caught fish in paddy fields and was thrown in jail as a 10-year-old during the war. He fought to win a Commonwealth scholarship to get a decent education, met the love of his life at a Chinese New Year party, became a Professor at two of the best universities in Asia, and went on to write one the most widely-used economics textbooks of the time, Elements of Economic Theory.At 84, Lim Chong Yah is as feisty, indomitable and curious as when he was a small, cheeky boy catching fighting fish in those paddy fields. And he still asks the fundamental question of how each of us can make a difference.

Southeast Asia is going through tremendous changes. The market-oriented economies of Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand have been showing robust growth, particularly before the Asian financial crisis of 1997/98. The transitional economies of Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam are also exhibiting signs of economic awakening and revival after years of internal political and social turmoil. Despite these encouraging signs, the region still has a long road ahead to achieve developed nation status.Southeast Asia: The Long Road Ahead is a serious and concise study on various important economic aspects of Southeast Asia. Existing economic studies on the region are mainly topical in nature. Most of the publications only attempt to offer a partial treatment of the issues and fail to examine these issues in a holistic manner. The objective of this book is to provide a more complete cross-country discussion on the economic issues and problems facing Southeast Asia. Besides critically examining the multiple facets of changes and problems that have been and will be encountered by Southeast Asia, the book also presents a lucid exposition on the prospects of the region. However, it does not stop there. It moves on to provide pointers and suggestions on how Southeast Asian countries should proceed with their development options and processes. The book should be of interest to economists, graduate students on Southeast Asia and all those who want to have a better knowledge and understanding of the important Southeast Asian region.In this latest edition, data were updated and new emerging trends explored. A significant portion of the text was redrafted so as to make this edition more compact and concise than the earlier ones. New “Suggested Discussion Topics” are added, and contemporary issues such as the Global Financial Tsunami, Asian economic integration and Michael Spence's World Bank Report are also dealt with.

Southeast Asia is going through tremendous changes. The market-oriented economies of Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand have been showing robust growth, particularly before the Asian financial crisis of 1997/98. The transitional economies of Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam are also exhibiting signs of economic awakening and revival after years of internal political and social turmoil. Despite these encouraging signs, the region still has a long road ahead to achieve developed nation status.Southeast Asia: The Long Road Ahead is a serious and concise study on various important economic aspects of Southeast Asia. Existing economic studies on the region are mainly topical in nature. Most of the publications only attempt to offer a partial treatment of the issues and fail to examine these issues in a holistic manner. The objective of this book is to provide a more complete cross-country discussion on the economic issues and problems facing Southeast Asia. Besides critically examining the multiple facets of changes and problems that have been and will be encountered by Southeast Asia, the book also presents a lucid exposition on the prospects of the region. However, it does not stop there. It moves on to provide pointers and suggestions on how Southeast Asian countries should proceed with their development options and processes. The book should be of interest to economists, graduate students on Southeast Asia and all those who want to have a better knowledge and understanding of the important Southeast Asian region.In this latest edition, data were updated and new emerging trends explored. A significant portion of the text was redrafted so as to make this edition more compact and concise than the earlier ones. New “Suggested Discussion Topics” are added, and contemporary issues such as the Global Financial Tsunami, Asian economic integration and Michael Spence's World Bank Report are also dealt with.

Written by Emeritus Professor LIM Chong-Yah, Founding Chairman of the tripartite National Wages Council (NWC), this unique volume offers readers an insider's view of the genesis and the evolution of the wage determination mechanism and system in Singapore under the aegis of the NWC. As a tripartite body dealing with wages, wage policies and wage-related matters and promoting Growth with Equity, the NWC played a critical role in transforming industrial relations in Singapore from the then confrontational approach to that of mutual understanding, esprit de corps and social co-partnership. Drawing from his 30-year experience as NWC Chairman (1972–2001), Singapore's eminent Economics Professor shares with readers the important process and problems of seeking equitable wage increases through tripartite consensus based on a yearly national wage guideline system. The book also chronicles the role of the NWC in crisis management in 1974, 1985 and 1998, and in Economic Restructuring, 1979–1981. The structure and operation of this unique Singapore institution and the interesting problems of securing unanimity of support from the three tripartite partners are revealed in the book. Some important NWC personalities and their concerns and unique contributions are interestingly covered, anecdotally.

Why are some nations rich and others poor? Why do the citizens of some countries lead a happy, prosperous life while others struggle in terrible want?This book takes the reader through the eventful life journey of one of Singapore's best known economists and educators, Professor Lim Chong Yah. Born in Malacca, the author planted tapioca to feed himself and his family, caught fish in paddy fields and was thrown in jail as a 10-year-old during the war. He fought to win a Commonwealth scholarship to get a decent education, met the love of his life at a Chinese New Year party, became a Professor at two of the best universities in Asia, and went on to write one the most widely-used economics textbooks of the time, Elements of Economic Theory.At 84, Lim Chong Yah is as feisty, indomitable and curious as when he was a small, cheeky boy catching fighting fish in those paddy fields. And he still asks the fundamental question of how each of us can make a difference.

Southeast Asia is going through tremendous changes. The market-oriented economies of Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand have been showing robust growth, particularly before the Asian financial crisis of 1997/98. The transitional economies of Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam are also exhibiting signs of economic awakening and revival after years of internal political and social turmoil. Despite these encouraging signs, the region still has a long road ahead to achieve developed nation status.Southeast Asia: The Long Road Ahead is a serious and concise study on various important economic aspects of Southeast Asia. Existing economic studies on the region are mainly topical in nature. Most of the publications only attempt to offer a partial treatment of the issues and fail to examine these issues in a holistic manner. The objective of this book is to provide a more complete cross-country discussion on the economic issues and problems facing Southeast Asia. Besides critically examining the multiple facets of changes and problems that have been and will be encountered by Southeast Asia, the book also presents a lucid exposition on the prospects of the region. However, it does not stop there. It moves on to provide pointers and suggestions on how Southeast Asian countries should proceed with their development options and processes. The book should be of interest to economists, graduate students on Southeast Asia and all those who want to have a better knowledge and understanding of the important Southeast Asian region.In this latest edition, data were updated and new emerging trends explored. A significant portion of the text was redrafted so as to make this edition more compact and concise than the earlier ones. New “Suggested Discussion Topics” are added, and contemporary issues such as the Global Financial Tsunami, Asian economic integration and Michael Spence's World Bank Report are also dealt with.

Southeast Asia is going through tremendous changes. The market-oriented economies of Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand have been showing robust growth, particularly before the Asian financial crisis of 1997/98. The transitional economies of Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam are also exhibiting signs of economic awakening and revival after years of internal political and social turmoil. Despite these encouraging signs, the region still has a long road ahead to achieve developed nation status.Southeast Asia: The Long Road Ahead is a serious and concise study on various important economic aspects of Southeast Asia. Existing economic studies on the region are mainly topical in nature. Most of the publications only attempt to offer a partial treatment of the issues and fail to examine these issues in a holistic manner. The objective of this book is to provide a more complete cross-country discussion on the economic issues and problems facing Southeast Asia. Besides critically examining the multiple facets of changes and problems that have been and will be encountered by Southeast Asia, the book also presents a lucid exposition on the prospects of the region. However, it does not stop there. It moves on to provide pointers and suggestions on how Southeast Asian countries should proceed with their development options and processes. The book should be of interest to economists, graduate students on Southeast Asia and all those who want to have a better knowledge and understanding of the important Southeast Asian region.In this latest edition, data were updated and new emerging trends explored. A significant portion of the text was redrafted so as to make this edition more compact and concise than the earlier ones. New “Suggested Discussion Topics” are added, and contemporary issues such as the Global Financial Tsunami, Asian economic integration and Michael Spence's World Bank Report are also dealt with.

Written by Emeritus Professor LIM Chong-Yah, Founding Chairman of the tripartite National Wages Council (NWC), this unique volume offers readers an insider's view of the genesis and the evolution of the wage determination mechanism and system in Singapore under the aegis of the NWC. As a tripartite body dealing with wages, wage policies and wage-related matters and promoting Growth with Equity, the NWC played a critical role in transforming industrial relations in Singapore from the then confrontational approach to that of mutual understanding, esprit de corps and social co-partnership. Drawing from his 30-year experience as NWC Chairman (1972–2001), Singapore's eminent Economics Professor shares with readers the important process and problems of seeking equitable wage increases through tripartite consensus based on a yearly national wage guideline system. The book also chronicles the role of the NWC in crisis management in 1974, 1985 and 1998, and in Economic Restructuring, 1979–1981. The structure and operation of this unique Singapore institution and the interesting problems of securing unanimity of support from the three tripartite partners are revealed in the book. Some important NWC personalities and their concerns and unique contributions are interestingly covered, anecdotally.