Research Outline for Discussion (draft)
Cluster on “Development Cooperation Partnership in Southeast Asia”
7 September 2019
Policy Research Network in Southeast Asia Meeting, RSIS, Singapore
I.

Background
The landscape of international development cooperation in Southeast Asia is rapidlychanging, mainly due to the rising prominence of so-called “emerging donors”, or the“Southern providers of development cooperation” (Siriporn 2018). Among others, Chinaand India pledged to contribute to the enhanced regional connectivity under the Belt andRoad initiative (BRI) and the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical andEconomic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) respectively. “Traditional donors” such as Japan(among others) are also strengthening efforts to assist the development of “qualityinfrastructure” under the initiative of Free and Open Indo-Pacific (FOIP). Less focusedbut nonetheless important development is that the emerging economies in the region suchas Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, and Malaysia are steadily accumulating uniqueexperiences as the providers of South-South Cooperation (SSC) in the region and beyond.
In the face of growing activism of donors with various norms, goals and modalities inthe region (Sato et al 2011), Southeast Asian countries are urged to establish adevelopment cooperation partnership. Here, “development cooperation partnership”
refers to a mechanism or a platform of consultation, coordination, and mutual learning
between donors and recipients as well as among donors to enhance the effectiveness ofdevelopment cooperation. For the so-called CLMV countries (Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar,and Vietnam), development cooperation partnership is required to ensure that donors’cooperation strategies align with the development strategies of the recipients, and thus toavoid “donor-driven aid”. For the “emerging donors” in the region (Singapore, Indonesia,Thailand, and Malaysia), development cooperation partnership functions as a forum tocoordinate their activities among themselves and with donors outside the region (China,India, and Japan etc.) to avoid the duplication of aid activities, or to exchange experiences
and lessons learned. In a word, development cooperation partnership is a key device forthe effective and efficient mobilization of the stakeholders’ resources in tackling thecommon development challenges of the region. It is also a mechanism for the ASEANcountries to achieve “ASEAN centrality” in designing the regional architecture ofdevelopment cooperation.
Keenly aware of the importance to meet this challenge, the ASEAN countries aretrying to strengthen communication and cooperation among themselves. 1 However, the1

A recent example of this endeavour is the publication of the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo1

shape of development cooperation partnership in Southeast Asian region is still unclear,and its concrete architecture remains to be elaborated.
II.

The Research

Research Objective: Against the above-mentioned background, this joint research isdesigned to shed light on the realities of development cooperation process in Southeast
Asian region with an emphasis on the analysis of SSC by the “emerging donors” in theregion, and to provide policymakers and practitioners with policy recommendations tobuild an effective and workable development cooperation partnership both with outside
donors (such as China, India, Japan etc.) as well as among regional countries.
Research Questions: A preliminary list of research questions are as follows:
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How are the realities and situation of the development of in-regional
development cooperation in Southeast Asia? And what are its expected roles?
What are the achievements, lessons learned, challenges, and the future
direction of the development cooperation (SSC) by Southeast Asian “emergingdonors”? (analyses of Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, and Malaysia areenvisaged)
How are Southeast Asian “emerging donors” trying to mobilize their uniqueexperience of their own development for their development cooperation?
(Comparative case studies would be useful)
How do recipients assess the effectiveness, strengths and weaknesses ofdevelopment cooperation by traditional and emerging donors? From therecipients’ perspectives, what are the difficulties in managing numerous
donors? (Comparative case studies of CLMV countries would be useful)
What kind of development cooperation partnership should be establishedbetween outside donors and regional countries, and among regional countries,
to facilitate the effective deployment of development cooperation forsustainable, resilient, and inclusive development of Southeast Asian region?
How are the traditional donors’ experience of aid harmonization andcoordination (both success and failure) applicable to Southeast Asian region?

Expected outputs of this research would be a series of papers of academic quality (7,000–10,000 words) with policy implications and recommendations for the policymakers andpractitioners of development cooperation.

Pacific adopted by the ASEAN Summit in Thailand in June 2019.
2III.
Timeline
October 2019 (TBD)
Kickoff meeting among the team members to decide the research concept and questions
October 2020 (TBD)
Second meeting among the team members to discuss the draft papers
February 2021
Presentation of the research results at the Tokyo Forum
IV.
The TeamMr. Hiroaki Shiga (JICA Research Institute, coordinator)
Dr. Nguyen Huy Hoang (Vietnamese Academy of Social Sciences, Institute forSoutheast Asian Studies)
Dr. Siriporn Wajjwalku (Thammasat University)
Additional members from Indonesia, Singapore, and Malaysia are envisaged.

--Reference
Sato, Jin, Shiga Hiroaki, Kobayashi Takaaki, & Kondoh Hisahiro. 2011. “Emerging
donors from a recipient perspective: An institutional analysis of foreign aid in Cambodia.”World Development. Vol. 39. No.12, pp. 2091-2104.
Siriporn, Wajjwalku ed. 2018. Actors and Processes in Development Cooperation:
Challenges to Traditional Practices. Network for International Development
Cooperation (NIDC).

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