- principle agreement was reached to make the lines multilateral rather than bilateral, which would presumably make for more efficient activation in a crisis. ghosh, s. r. ( 2006 ), east asian finance : the road to robust markets, world bank, washington dc, p. 64. see asian development bank ( 2007 ), “ ten years after the crisis : the facts about investment and growth ”, in beyond the crisis : emerging trends and challenges, pp. 1 - 20. currently, the cmi involves a network of 17 bilateral swap arrangements, totalling us $ 83 billion. the swaps are all us - dollar based, except for swaps between japan - china, japan - korea and china - philippines, which are local - currency based. as a result of these developments, i imagine that today few countries in asia would, if they got into trouble, consider an early approach to the international financial institutions for assistance. but while the regional initiatives are all useful, they remain to be tested under less benign conditions in the global financial system. in fact, it is open to doubt whether they would necessarily prove sufficient as a defence mechanism, were really big changes in sentiment about the region to occur in international markets the way they did in 1997 - 98. if most countries in the region were under pressure at the same time, there would surely be questions as to whether regional counterparties could meet all the commitments for support. in any case, few financial crises are confined to one region : even those that start with a regional focus have a habit of spilling over quite quickly, as events after the asian crisis demonstrated. so while everyone has an interest in regional crises being effectively dealt with at the regional level, we surely still need global mechanisms for dealing with crises, and preventing them as far as possible. that prompts the obvious question : what has been done since the asian crisis to improve the global arrangements? what has been done internationally since the crisis? a good deal of effort has gone into crisis prevention. there has been a step - up in national and regional - level surveillance by the international official bodies, and an emphasis on more timely and accurate data being made available by governments. a stronger focus on financial sector soundness is another key element, with a number of countries undergoing financial sector assessment programs, in conjunction with the imf. these and other efforts represent serious attempts to use what was learned from the asian and other crises to reduce susceptibility, or at least to get an early

manage stocks and assets of johor corporation under endowment has essentially institutionalised the link between a corporate entity and waqf. this ensures efficient, transparent and professional management of waqf assets. success stories and good practices of waqf management should be emulated and be used by others as a benchmark to further spur the vibrancy of waqf development in this country. the second strategy is to ensure that we achieve the goals of social equity and economic efficiency in operationalisation of waqf projects. while projects developed from waqf proceeds should benefit society at large, it is my humble view that it makes sense from an economic efficiency standpoint to allow market mechanism to allocate these scarce resources. as waqf is intended to generate benefits in perpetuity for all generations to come, operating the fund on commercial terms allows it to be invested and managed in a manner that ensures preservation of capital. prioritising economic efficiency can help strengthen the position of waqf to carry out its social equity objectives effectively. to illustrate, rental of waqf - developed commercial complexes should be market determined, but lots with preferential rental rates could be designated for deserving community purposes, such as co - working spaces for start - ups and entrepreneurs. in healthcare, waqf hospital charges should be comparable with private medical fees, but different pricing tiers could be provided for the b40 segment and other deserving patients. similarly, waqf - owned universities should charge full tuition fees to all, but offer scholarships and other forms of need - and merit - based assistance for high - potential students from less privileged backgrounds. this approach is indeed in line with the conditions for waqf creation – ziyadah and nuqsan, idkhal and ikhraj, which grant flexibility and openness to redirect waqf benefits to those in greater need. if executed well, waqf can be both economically efficient and sustainable, while at the same time fulfiling its socio - economic objectives. the third imperative is to professionalise and modernise waqf management. for waqf to progress strongly, it requires a new character and a more modern image. in this regard, i would identify two priorities, namely professionalising those who are entrusted to manage waqf and putting in place proper governance framework. let me elaborate. the management of waqf must be entrusted to experienced and knowledgeable experts with the highest integrity – that is,