ASEAN

Its Cultural, Economic, Socio Information

and Political aspects
MEMBER STATES OF ASEAN:
• Brunei
• Cambodia
• Laos
• Myanmar
• Vietnam
• Malaysia
• Indonesia
• Thailand
• Philippines
• Singapore

-CULTURAL ASPECTS-
-BRUNEI-
Capital : Bandar Seri Begawan
National Population : 305,100
Language : Bahasa Melayu

Brunei's culture mainly derived from the Old Malay World, a territory which covered the Malay Archipelago.
Brunei’s culture is therefore deeply rooted in its Malay origins, which are reflected in the nation’s language,

architecture, ceremonies, and customs governing daily life. Though various foreign civilisations have played a role
in forming Brunei’s rich history, the traditions of the Old Malay World have left an indelible mark on the culture of
modern Brunei. The nation’s official language is Malay, but English is widely spoken by most of the population, and
most signs in the country are written in Roman script. If Malay traditions are Brunei’s cultural root, then Islam is its
heart. The nation’s Malay Islamic Monarchy is a uniquely Bruneian blend combining the best of Malay culture with
the teachings of Islam and a mutual respect between ruler and subjects.

-CAMBODIA-
Capital : Phnom Penh
National Population : 11 million
Language : Khmer

Theravada Buddhism is the official religion in Cambodia which is

practiced by 95 percent of the population-- just like that of Thailand, Burma, Sri Lanka. However, Christianity and
Cham Muslim are being active and popular among a large number of population as well in the capital and
provinces, showing a sign of growth. Daoism and Confuism are also commonly practiced among the Chinese
people. To ensure order and harmony in the universe, Angkor's architects and sculptors created stone temples that
symbolized the cosmic world and decorated them with wall carvings and sculptures of Hindu gods and the Buddha.
Religious guidelines dictated that a basic temple layout include a central shrine, a courtyard, an enclosing wall, and
a moat.

-LAOS-
Capital : Vientiane
National Population : 4.8 million
Language : Lao

Lao peole boast a plethora of distinctive monuments and

architectural styles. One of the most notable structures is That Luang, the Great Sacred stupa, in Vientiane. Lao
religious images and art are also distinctive and set Lao apart from its neighbours. The 'Calling for Rain' posture of

Buddha images in Lao, for example, which depicts the Buddha standing with his hands held rigidly at his side,
fingers pointing to the ground, can not be found in other Southeast Asian Buddhist art traditions.
-MYANMAR-
Capital : Yangon
National Population : 52 million
Language : Myanmar

Chiefly inspired by ancient Indian tradition, Myanmar arts has evolved to its present delightful diversity and
artistically absorbing forms. Myanmar theatre, like its people, is incredibly colourful, pleasantly humorous, very
lively and very likable - one of South East Asia’s most captivating. Marionette theatre which originated during the
Bagan period and developed in the reign of King Singu in the eighteenth century is a highly skilled art form. Some
of the puppets have as many as sixty strings and even movable eyebrows. While the puppet masters manipulate
the puppets (twenty eight characters in all), male and female impersonators sing and recite the parts.

-VIETNAM-
Capital : Hanoi
National Population : 98.32 million
Language : Vietnamese

A very popular belief among Vietnamese is the custom of the

ancestor cult. In every household, an ancestor altar is installed in the most solemn location. The Vietnamese
culture has always evolved on the basis of the wet rice civilization. Thus, the lifestyle of the Vietnamese population
is closely related to its village and native lands.

-MALAYSIA-
Capital : Kuala Lumpur
National Population : 22.6 million
Language : Bahasa Malaysia
Having had an interesting past and being a part of the international
spice route many hundreds of years ago, Malaysia has turned into a
mosaic of cultures. Everything from its people to its architecture reflect a colourful heritage and an amalgamated
culture. The largest ethnic groups in Malaysia are the Malays, Chinese and Indians. In Sabah and Sarawak, there are
a myriad of indigenous ethnic groups with their own unique culture and heritage. A fascinating fusion of tradition
and modernity, Malaysia's architecture today is a reflection of Asia's many styles, cultures and religions.

-INDONESIA-
Capital : Jakarta
National Population : 200 million
Language : Bahasa Indonesia
Indonesia is culturally rich. Indonesian art and culture are
intertwined with religion and age-old traditions from the time of

early migrants with Western thoughts brought by Portuguese traders

and Dutch colonists. Indonesian culture, especially its architecture has been to a great extent dominated and
influenced by the Indian, although European influences have also been particularly strong since the nineteenth

century. Traditional buildings in Indonesia are built on stilts with oversized saddle roofs which have been the home
of the Batak and the Toraja. The Torajan use the buffalo horns, stacked one above another in front of the house as
an indication of status. Scenes from the Ramayana adorn the outer walls in different colors. 
-THAILAND-
Capital : Bangkok
National Population : 61 million
Language : Thai

The culture of Thailand has been greatly influenced by Buddhism but

there have been dominating influences of Hinduism as well as influences from its neighboring nations of Myanmar
and Laos. Chinese and Indian culture has also had influences on the Thai culture and cuisine. In terms of religion,
thailand is predominantly a Theravada Buddhist country but there are minorities like the Phra Nyanasamvara
Suvaddhana Mahathera and Muslims as well.

-PHILIPPINES-
Capital : Manila
National Population : 74 million
Language : Filipino

One word that would best describe Philippine culture, would be

diversity. The people largely come from the Malay race and share cultural similarities to Malaysians and
Indonesians but even before the first Europeans came to the Philippines they had a culture different from other
Malay eople. With over 150 languages scattered throughout more than 7000 islands it is not surprising at each
region has cultural elements unique to their area. The Customs and Traditions of the Philippines are strongly
influenced by its colonized past. The Spanish colonization of the Philippines, in fact governed from Mexico, lasted
for more than 350 years, thus there is an important presence of Spanish influence in many aspect of the Philippine
culture. The Filipino language, more commonly known as Tagalog, have many borrowed Spanish words. Filipinos
are religious in nature; most of the present celebrated traditions are a mix of Christian, Pagan and other local
religious rites.

-SINGAPORE-
Capital : Singapore
National Population : 4.13 million
Language : English, Bahasa Melayu,
Mandarin, and Tamil
One of the most remarkable aspects of Singapore is the truly
cosmopolitan nature of her population, a natural result of the
country’s geographical position and commercial success. Drawn by
the lure of better prospects, the immigrants brought with them their own cultures, languages, customs and
festivals. Intermarriage and integration helped knit these diverse influences into the fabric of Singapore’s multi-

faceted society, giving it a vibrant and diverse cultural heritage. By the end of the 19th century, Singapore became
one of the most cosmopolitan cities in Asia, with major ethnic groups in the country being the Chinese, Malays,
Indians, Peranakans and Eurasians. As a reflection of its collage of cultures, Singapore has adopted one
representative language for each of the four major ethnic or 'racial' groups. The four official languages in
Singapore's constitution are English, Chinese, Malay and Tamil.
 -ECONOMIC ASPECTS-

-BRUNEI-
• Brunei is a small country with profuse possibilities. It has
less than half a million people but ranks as having one of
the highest rates of macroeconomic stability in the world.
• Brunei offers high quality of life. GDP per capita as of 2011
is at US$38,703, the second highest in ASEAN.
• Brunei’s commitment to continued prosperity and stable macroeconomics is underscored by
Wawasan 2035, the government’s National Vision.
• Wawasan 2035 provides for the promotion of investments both in downstream industries and
economic clusters beyond oil and gas industry. 

-CAMBODIA-
• Prospects for Cambodia, one of the newer ASEAN
Member States, have greatly improved in the past years,
with the country’s GDP growing faster than expected in
2012.
•  Agriculture, tourism, and garments industries bolstered
the country’s positive performance. Growth is expected to be sustained in the coming years.
• Cambodia thrives in agriculture which accounts for 32% of the country’s total economy. Major
products include rice, rubber, maize, and cassava.
• Potentials in agriculture are driven by Cambodia’s geographical location, vast fertile land, huge
rural population, and access to a number of rivers and water bodies.

-LAOS-
• Lao prides itself with abundant natural resources. It is
home to tons of coal, hardwood lumber, gypsum, tin, gold,
and gemstones.
• Lao’s topography offers investors great opportunities
particularly in hydropower, mining, logging, and
agriculture.
• Its unspoiled natural resources make Lao PDR an interesting tourist destination. In the recent
years, Lao has been registering over 2 million tourist arrivals.
• The government’s opening of Lao to private enterprises and foreign investors have steadily led to
development and drove Lao’s more than 7% growth from 2008 to 2012
-MYANMAR-
• Myanmar is poised to maximize its potentials as it enters a
new era of political and economic development. Investors
are bullish about Myanmar given the positive changes and
rapid developments in the country.
• Myanmar’s advantages include its abundant natural
resources and low-cost workforce. It is also strategically located. Myanmar is neighbor to a
number of ASEAN countries and a gateway to the huge markets of China and India.
• Investors looking at Myanmar will find tons of opportunities in the country’s agricultural sector.
Myanmar’s rich fertile lands, agriculture-skilled population, and low labor cost are keys to
advancing industries .
-VIETNAM-
• Once among the smaller economies in ASEAN, Vietnam
today emerges as a country moving towards economic
modernization and engaging in competitive and export
driven industries.
• Vietmam’s average GDP growth from 2006 to 2011 was
strong at 6.8%. Its GDP doubled to US$ 123 billion from US$ 61 billion in 2006.
• Major exports are machinery, equipment part and accessories, raw petroleum, garment, and
electronic accessories.
• Industries ripe for investments include aqua-agriculture, retail, telecommunications,
construction, manufacturing, among others.
-MALAYSIA-
• Malaysia is one of the more highly developed countries in
the region, with GDP growth of 5.6% in 2012 and a per
capita income of over US$9,000. Unemployment rate is
low at 3.2% while inflation is maintained at a low of 1.9%.
• Investment opportunities abound in services and
manufacturing including, among others, basic metal
products, electrical and electronics, engineering support,
machinery & equipment, rubber products, medical devices, and petrochemical & polymer.
• Malaysia is your Profit Centre in Asia. It offers a favorable investment climate to individuals and
organizations wanting to do business.

-INDONESIA-
• Indonesia is a growing power house in Southeast Asia. A
member of the G20, Indonesia’s GDP stands at US$1
trillion, the largest in the region.
• It is touted by analysts to be among the new economies to
watch out. Indonesia is part of the newly-coined emerging
 markets acronym MIST (Mexico, Indonesia, South Korea, and Turkey) owing to its potentials,
huge GDP, and large share in the Goldman’s N-11 equity fund.
• Key sectoral opportunities are in infrastructure including projects in toll road, marine
transportation, railway, power, and water supply; food and agriculture; and energy sector.
-THAILAND-
• Thailand’s strategic location makes it an investors’ gateway to Asia.
It is at the center of most ASEAN countries, including Myanmar on
the west, Cambodia and Lao PDR on the east, and Malaysia,
Indonesia, and Singapore in the south.
• Thailand offers investors a world-class infrastructure.
• As the hub of ASEAN, Thailand advocates for free and fair trade. It is instrumental in the formulation of
the ASEAN Free Trade Area and a signatory to a number of other free trade agreements
-PHILIPPINES-
• The Philippines’ more than 90 million people are the
country’s key assets. The depth and quality of its human
resources make the Philippines an attractive place for
people doing business.
• A founding member of ASEAN, the Philippines is a middle-
income ASEAN Member State but is today considered the new tiger in Asia amid strong growth.
• Filipino employees are renowned and trusted worldwide. The great Filipino worker is known for
his diligence, hard work, creativity, professionalism, technical skills, and English proficiency.
-SINGAPORE-
• Singapore is one of the most developed economies
globally, with a GDP per capita of over US$ 50,000.
Businesses are enticed to invest in Singapore given the
country’s strategic policies, regulations, processes, and
administration.
• Singapore’s pro-intellectual property stance earned it the
title of having the best IP protection in Asia and the second
best in the world based on World Economic Forum’s Global Competitiveness Report.
• Emerging businesses in Singapore are those in automotive, lifestyle, nanotechnology, safety and
security, and other technology-driven industries.