Post-War Southeast Asian Economic Change & Development (1945-2000)

100 vocabulary flashcards summarising key terms, institutions, policies and outcomes related to Southeast Asian economic change and development from 1945–2000.

Green Revolution

Package of high-yield seeds, fertilisers and irrigation that raised rice output across Southeast Asia from the 1960s.

Import Substitution Industrialization (ISI)

Strategy that protects domestic producers so they can replace previously imported manufactured goods.

Export-Oriented Industrialization (EOI)

Growth model that promotes manufactured exports through incentives, EPZs and FDI attraction.

Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP)

Philippine land-redistribution law launched in 1988 to reduce rural inequality.

Federal Land Development Authority (FELDA)

Malaysian agency (1956) that settled landless workers on smallholdings, especially for palm oil and rubber.

Rubber Industry Smallholders Development Authority (RISDA)

Malaysian body funding rubber smallholders’ replanting and productivity improvements via a tax levy.

Pioneer Industries Ordinance (1958)

Malayan law granting five-year tax holidays and profit remittance guarantees to strategic ISI investors.

Export Processing Zone (EPZ)

Fenced industrial area offering duty-free inputs and relaxed regulations to encourage export manufacturing.

Thailand Board of Investment (BOI)

Agency (1961) providing tax breaks and 100 % foreign ownership for approved industrial projects.

National Economic Development Board (NEDB)

Thai planning body (1959) that drafted the First (1961-66) and Second (1967-71) National Plans.

Repelita I

Indonesia’s first five-year plan (1969-74) prioritising high-yield rice, irrigation and rural roads.

International Rice Research Institute (IRRI)

Philippines-based centre (1960) that bred HYVs such as IR-8 ‘miracle rice’.

High-Yielding Varieties (HYVs)

Scientifically bred crops that greatly out-yield traditional strains when given fertiliser and water.

Bataan Export Processing Zone

Philippines’ first EPZ (1972) used to attract foreign electronics and garment firms under Marcos.

Lat Krabang Industrial Estate

Export zone near Bangkok (1978) built with foreign loans to host 100 %-owned multinational plants.

Bangkok International Banking Facility (BIBF)

1993 scheme turning Bangkok into an offshore centre by allowing foreign-currency lending with few controls.

Pyidawtha Plan

Burma’s 1952 socialist blueprint emphasising ISI state enterprises, welfare projects and land redistribution.

Ne Win’s Autarky

Burma’s 1962-88 policy of economic isolation, nationalisation and self-sufficiency that stifled growth.

National Economic Development Corporation (NEDCO)

Thai state holding company (1954) with 1 000+ enterprises in sugar, kenaf, marble and paper.

Pertamina

Indonesian state oil company whose 1975 US$10 billion debt crisis exposed SOE mismanagement.

Duty Exemption Scheme (1986)

Indonesian reform waiving import duties for firms exporting ≥85 % (later 65 %) of output.

Floating Exchange Rate Policy (Indonesia, 1986)

Shift away from a fixed rate to boost export price competitiveness after oil revenue fell.

Asian Tigers

High-growth East/Southeast Asian economies such as Thailand in the late 1980s-1990s.

Miracle Rice (IR-8)

High-yield variety released 1966-67 that lifted Philippine rice output but widened inequality.

Retail Trade Nationalization Law (1954)

Philippine act limiting Chinese ownership in retail, part of post-war economic nationalism.

Filipino First Policy

1958-61 initiative giving Filipinos priority in foreign-exchange allocation and government contracts.

Crony Capitalism

System where politically connected firms receive monopolies, credit and contracts, seen under Marcos & Suharto.

Rice Self-Sufficiency (Indonesia, 1984)

Achievement of meeting domestic rice demand after a 45 % output jump 1974-80.

Oil Boom (Indonesia 1973-79)

Surge in petroleum earnings financing subsidies and protected ISI industries.

Bangkok Bank (Sophonphanich family)

Largest Thai commercial bank that thrived despite 1950s anti-Chinese measures.

Burma Land Redistribution (1950s)

U Nu’s allocation of 9 million acres plus tenancy reforms aimed at rural equity.

First Thai National Economic Development Plan

1961-66 roadmap prioritising agriculture and ISI via public investment.

U.S. Aid to Thailand (Sarit-Thanom)

Over US$1 billion in Cold-War grants and military spending that financed roads and rural schemes.

Thai Financial Reform Plan (1990)

Programme dismantling interest-rate ceilings and widening bank activities pre-Asian crisis.

Pertamina Debt Crisis (1975)

SOE’s excessive borrowing equalling 30 % of Indonesia’s GDP, requiring government bailout.

Indonesian Nationalization of Dutch Enterprises

1959 takeover that put 90 % of firms under state control during Sukarno’s era.

Third Way Economics

Post-colonial middle path combining nationalism, state planning and selective private activity.

Agricultural Intensification (Indonesia 1970s)

State-backed fertiliser, seed and irrigation drive raising rice yields by 45 %.

Five-Year Development Plans (Thailand)

Rolling national plans starting 1961 guiding investment and sector priorities.

Sarit-Thanom Rural Infrastructure Projects

Massive 1960s spending on roads, irrigation and electrification to boost farm exports.

FELDA Smallholdings Scheme

Malaysian model giving settlers 4-6 ha plots and long-term credit for cash crops.

RISDA Replanting Fund

Malaysian cess-financed subsidy helping rubber smallholders replace old trees with high-yield clones.

Pioneer Industries Tax Holidays

Five-year profit-tax exemptions granted to strategic Malaysian manufacturers after 1958.

Malayan Industrial Development Finance (MIDF)

1960s credit institution lending to new factories in ISI zones.

Indonesia Growth Spurt 1967-73

GDP expansion averaging 7 % annually after Suharto’s policy stabilisation.

Indonesian ‘Economic Miracle’ (1990s)

Period of rapid 7-8 % growth and manufacturing export surge before the 1997 crisis.

Thai Bank Liberalization (1990-92)

Removal of lending-rate caps and activity restrictions to increase financial sector competition.

Import Bans (Indonesia Suharto)

Total prohibitions on goods like cars and appliances already assembled domestically.

Thai Agricultural Modernization (1950s-60s)

Spread of irrigation and HYVs boosting rice output and export earnings.

Thai Export Diversification (late 1970s)

Shift from primary goods to a broader mix of manufactured exports and markets.

Liem Sioe Leong

Chinese-Indonesian tycoon whose Salim Group flourished via Suharto-era patronage.

Philippine Agricultural Monopolies

Coconut, sugar and grain cartels run by Marcos cronies that hurt farmers.

CARP Implementation Challenges

Landlord resistance and funding shortfalls that slowed Philippine land reform.

Philippine Wealth Inequality 1986

Top 2 % owned 50 % of assets while bottom 20 % held 5.5 %.

Poverty Reduction Indonesia 1976-96

Green-Revolution and job growth halved the national poverty rate.

Thai Urban–Rural Gap (1960s)

Incomes in Bangkok surged while road networks funnelled rural resources outward.

Sarit’s Technocrats

US-trained economists who steered pragmatic, market-friendly Thai policies.

Chinese-Thai Entrepreneurs

Assimilated minority group that dominated Thailand’s private sector during rapid growth.

Chinese-Indonesian Conglomerates

Family groups enjoying loans, licences and monopolies under Suharto’s patronage.

Foreign Direct Investment (FDI)

Cross-border capital flows that financed EPZ factories and modern services.

Indonesia’s Oil-Price Dependency

State revenues tied to petroleum, making budgets vulnerable to price swings.

US Military Aid Decline (Philippines 1991)

Closure of Clark and Subic bases cut a key revenue source, pressuring reforms.

Japanese Yen Appreciation (1985)

Plaza Accord shift that pushed Japanese firms to relocate production to ASEAN.

Relocation of Japanese Industries to Thailand

Post-1985 investment wave in autos, electronics and machinery clusters.

Sukarno’s Heavy-Industry Drive

1950s-60s state investment in steel, shipyards and machinery funded by commodity exports.

Malaysian Manufacturing Boom (1960s)

Industrial output share rose from 9 % of GDP in 1960 to 13 % by 1970.

Palm Oil Diversification (Malaysia)

Shift from rubber/tin to high-yield oil-palm cultivation after 1957 independence.

Tin & Rubber Colonial Economy

British-era Malayan structure centred on primary commodity exports.

Philippine Economic Nationalism (1950s)

Policies favouring Filipino ownership in trade and industry to curb alien dominance.

Chinese Community’s Business Dominance

Diaspora networks controlling commerce in Thailand, Malaysia and the Philippines.

Thai State Enterprises Expansion (1950s)

Government ownership stretching to 1 000 firms under Phibun to limit Chinese power.

Burma Land Reform (1970s)

Ne Win’s redistribution that narrowed rural income gaps despite low growth.

U Nu’s Socialist Leanings

Trend toward nationalisation and SOEs while still allowing a regulated private sector.

Thai Road & Irrigation Network

Government capital works linking farms to ports and stabilising water supply.

Rural Electrification (Thailand)

1960s roll-out of power lines improving village productivity and welfare.

Oil Revenue Farm Subsidies (Indonesia)

1973-80 budget funds used to cheapen fertiliser and irrigation for rice farmers.

Post-1986 Philippine EPZ Promotion

Aquino & Ramos continuation of export zones for garments and electronics.

Philippine Industrial Stagnation (1990s)

Manufacturing share slipped from 34.5 % of GDP (1990) to 31.6 % (2002).

Philippine Banking Reforms (1993)

Creation of a solvent Bangko Sentral and liberal rules for foreign banks.

Philippine Floating Peso (1986)

Shift to market-determined rate aimed at boosting export competitiveness.

Philippine Debt Crisis (1984-86)

7.5 % annual GDP contraction after Marcos’ heavy borrowing and investor flight.

Thai High Growth (late 1980s-90s)

GDP expansion of 7–9 % that earned Thailand a ‘Tiger’ label.

Indonesian Income Disparities (New Order)

Rapid growth accompanied by widening gaps amid crony privileges.

Rural Stability via Rice Policy

Indonesia’s focus on cheap rice to curb unrest and lower poverty.

Thailand’s Post-War Agricultural Dependence

Rice remained core earner before large-scale industrialisation took hold.

Indonesian ISI Tariffs (1970s)

High duties and import bans nurturing local assembly of cars and appliances.

US Emergency Loan to Indonesia (1966)

US$30 million Japanese-financed credit for basic imports after Sukarno’s fall.

Soviet & Chinese Aid to Sukarno

Technical assistance and credits accepted after rejecting IMF-World Bank offers.

Burma’s Economic Isolation (Ne Win)

Withdrawal from global markets that dried up FDI until aid resumed mid-1970s.

World Bank & ADB Aid to Burma

Multilateral loans in the 1970s despite the regime’s socialist policies.

FDI Surge Indonesia early 1990s

Inflow jump after new liberalisation and end of Cold-War political risk.

Philippine Currency Liberalization (Ramos)

Removal of FX controls on current and capital accounts to woo investors.

Malayan Manufacturing Growth 10 % p.a.

Late 1950s-60s factory output expansion making industry most dynamic sector.

1961 BOI Incentives (Thailand)

First package of tariff exemptions, tax holidays and import-duty rebates for investors.

Investment Promotion Act (1977)

Thai law granting extra tax breaks and 100 % foreign equity for export projects.

Thailand Export Boom (1970s)

Volume of exports doubled by 1980 amid product and market diversification.

Decline in Philippine Sugar & Coconut Yields

Neglect of traditional export crops under post-war ISI led to falling productivity.