Bureau of Economic Policy Studies
Background
The Malaysian economy has undergone significant economic and social transformations since the 1980s and has had to face a constantly evolving set of challenges. Much of this has can be attributed to the combination of sound macroeconomic growth and dynamic development policies. Given the openness of the economy, international transactions of trade in goods and services, capital, technology and labour have been crucial to ensuring the dynamism and competitiveness of the Malaysian economy.
Objectives
The Bureau of Economic Policy Studies focuses on practical and policy-oriented research on subjects and issues of importance to the national economy, including regional and international developments. The Bureau closely monitors major developments on the global and national fronts and maintains a readiness to provide well-considered views, opinions and recommendations. Among other things, it:-
- Monitors current and emerging issues pertaining to Malaysia’s economy and how the country can interact with the regional economies, in particular, Asean, East Asia, the Asia Pacific, European Union, as well as developing South countries.
- Participates in international conferences, seminars and workshops to exchange information, analyses and opinions.
- Prepares policy memoranda, information notes, media articles and conference papers and presentations on a wide variety of subject matter.
- Undertakes consultancy projects with special focus on the strengths and weaknesses of the Malaysian growth and development model, and in collaboration with such international organisations as the World Bank, Asian Development Bank, United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and World Trade Organisation (WTO).
- Organise international and regional conferences, seminars and workshops on national, regional and international economic issues.
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East Asia Economic Centre
East Asia became a cooperative reality for the first time during the 1997 Asian financial crisis. At that time, the governments of Asean, together with China, Japan and Korea, acted cohesively to stabilise currencies and finance. In 1999, they agreed to cooperate more widely on economic, social and political fronts. Since then, the rapid economic integration of the region, driven largely by private commercial trade and investment, has given the concept of a regional entity further credence and weight.
The East Asia Economic Centre (EAEC) was established in 2003 to provide momentum to, research on regional economic and political cooperation and integration:-
The Centre supports the government by providing views, opinions and other inputs on Asean, Asean Plus One, Asean Plus Three and East Asia Summit matters.
It engages in extensive exchange of views among policymakers and scholars, both from within the region, as well as outside of it.
The Centre organises the East Asia Congress, an important ‘Track Two’ meeting of regional policy analysts and scholars.
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Centre for China Studies
The emergence of China is an historic event and one that deserves the most careful and competent analysis. Despite six centuries of interactions between the two countries, however, Malaysia remains ill equipped to study modern China in its political, economic and social dimensions. In an effort to redress this vacuum, the Centre for China Studies (CCS) was established in 2003 to focus on two areas:-
Practical policy research, analysis and prognosis on contemporary and near-future China that is of direct relevance and usefulness to the government of Malaysia; and practical detailed research, analysis and prognosis on contemporary and near-future China of direct relevance and usefulness to the multi-ethnic business community of Malaysia
The work of the CCS seeks to be non-abstract, non-academic, completely plugged into contemporary and near future realities on the ground and effective in bringing together up-to-the-minute world-class practical experience and intellectual power from every sector of Malaysian society and the four corners of the world.
Activities of the Centre include holding expert dialogues, network meetings, deep expertise programmes and strategic business consultations. The opinions of the Centre’s staff have been sought both by policymakers and analysts from within and outside the region.
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