https://www.scmp.com/rss/522583/feed The Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy (LKYSPP) is an autonomous postgraduate school of the National University of Singapore, located in Singapore. Established in 2004, its primary mission is to be a leading global public policy school in Asia, educating future leaders and improving governance standards for a more sustainable world. The LKYSPP focuses on education through Master’s, PhD, and Executive programmes, alongside research in areas such as public management, international relations,... en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Kolette Lim Kolette Lim In recent weeks, Singaporean Cindy has been troubled by an odour lingering in the air during her evening walks to the gym. “It’s the same situation every year, but I would say that the fogginess and burning smell have been getting stronger for the last year or so,” said the 33-year-old resident who lives in the southern estate of Telok Blangah. “I have a baby, so it concerns me a lot, and I know many other families feel the same,” she said. “I always keep our windows closed, which is not very... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3348070/haze-returns-singapore-crisis-quietly-accepted-asean-inevitable?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3348070/haze-returns-singapore-crisis-quietly-accepted-asean-inevitable?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Mar 2026 03:00:13 +0000 Mia Nurmamat Mia Nurmamat As China undergoes a sweeping economic transition, its regions are also in the process of embracing change. The powerhouses of yesteryear must adapt or risk falling behind, as traditional industries become less reliable growth drivers and new sectors take prominence. In this series, we explore three representative areas of the country as they attempt to navigate this rapidly changing environment. After Joyce Wu moved from Hainan province to Hong Kong in 2013, she marvelled for years at the... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3347581/chinas-hainan-wants-more-beach-tourism-will-new-customs-rules-cause-sea-change?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3347581/chinas-hainan-wants-more-beach-tourism-will-new-customs-rules-cause-sea-change?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 23 Mar 2026 22:00:10 +0000 Barbora Valockova Barbora Valockova What does the world’s digital economy rest on? Thousands of kilometres of fibre-optic cable lying on the ocean floor and, increasingly, in the crosshairs of great-power rivalry. The confluence of recent subsea cable disruptions, gaps in the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (Unclos) and intensifying great-power competition has elevated this underwater infrastructure from a technical and commercial concern to a security issue – characterised as “this century’s hidden battleground”. It has... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/opinion/article/3346525/underwater-and-unprotected-why-asean-and-eu-must-secure-subsea-lifelines?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/opinion/article/3346525/underwater-and-unprotected-why-asean-and-eu-must-secure-subsea-lifelines?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 15 Mar 2026 04:00:08 +0000 Phoebe Zhang Phoebe Zhang Local governments across China have rushed to ride the OpenClaw AI boom in hopes of spurring economic growth, only for Beijing to step in swiftly to rein in the frenzy. Authorities in Beijing have issued a series of safety warnings that analysts say underscore the divide in priorities between local and central authorities. The rush to adopt the artificial intelligence (AI) software has seen major internet companies offer low-cost or easily accessible versions, while local governments have rolled... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3346384/what-chinas-openclaw-divide-reveals-about-local-and-central-government-priorities?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3346384/what-chinas-openclaw-divide-reveals-about-local-and-central-government-priorities?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 12 Mar 2026 10:57:44 +0000 Kolette Lim Kolette Lim Singapore is preparing to build its tallest public housing project yet with some blocks rising above 60 storeys in the historic Chinatown area, in a sign of the city state pushing for higher density in prime areas to meet demand. Such super-tall developments are unlikely to become the norm, according to analysts, who cite higher construction costs, site constraints and tighter regulations aimed at preventing centrally located flats from becoming speculative investments. Singapore would build the... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3346379/some-singapore-flats-above-60-storeys-horizon-will-owners-face-tighter-curbs?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3346379/some-singapore-flats-above-60-storeys-horizon-will-owners-face-tighter-curbs?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 12 Mar 2026 10:41:54 +0000 Phoebe Zhang Phoebe Zhang During the past decade, Chinese think tanks have had the best of two worlds – having the backing of the government while having some room to move outside it. Encouraged by the country’s leadership to promote China’s soft power, the sector has grown in influence as retired officials have come on board, bringing expertise, connections and some freedom. Not unlike their Western counterparts, these institutes have come to play major roles in Track 2 diplomacy and policy recommendations. But two... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3343977/end-golden-age-chinese-think-tanks-star-ex-officials?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3343977/end-golden-age-chinese-think-tanks-star-ex-officials?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 19 Feb 2026 14:00:07 +0000 Kolette Lim Kolette Lim Foreign money is flowing back into Southeast Asia, and analysts expect the region to remain a draw for global investors even as geopolitical tensions and domestic political risks cloud the outlook. Emerging Southeast Asian markets recorded US$337 million of equity inflow in December last year, the highest monthly figure since September 2024, according to a Bloomberg report. These economies include Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and the Philippines. Analysts say the rebound points to... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3339114/why-investors-are-looking-southeast-asias-economies-amid-global-tensions?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3339114/why-investors-are-looking-southeast-asias-economies-amid-global-tensions?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 08 Jan 2026 02:30:48 +0000 Kolette Lim Kolette Lim As countries and economies around the world scramble for a slice of the growing artificial intelligence pie, Southeast Asia is also aiming to usher in a new dawn of higher productivity, fuelled by more investment and research opportunities in the technology. But tech experts warn that a deepening economic and tech divide is looming as nations in the region adopt AI at a different pace. On Wednesday, Google DeepMind announced the opening of a research lab in Singapore, focused on researching and... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3333690/why-aseans-ai-ambition-may-lead-widening-economic-and-tech-divide?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3333690/why-aseans-ai-ambition-may-lead-widening-economic-and-tech-divide?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 21 Nov 2025 09:15:29 +0000 David Dodwell David Dodwell As South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa convenes the Group of 20 summit in Johannesburg, two things are likely to be on many minds: the empty chair and the spirit of ubuntu. Wikipedia defines the ubuntu philosophy as encompassing “the interdependence of humans on one another and the acknowledgement of one’s responsibility to their fellow humans and the world around them”. For the purposes of South Africa’s hosting of the G20 summit, that Zulu term means multilateralism – anathema to US... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3333596/multilateralism-isnt-dead-despite-trumpian-year?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3333596/multilateralism-isnt-dead-despite-trumpian-year?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 21 Nov 2025 08:30:10 +0000 Phoebe Zhang Phoebe Zhang China’s Communist Party needs to enforce strict discipline to deal with external pressure and manage tough domestic development issues over the next five years, the president’s chief of staff has said. In an opinion piece in state-run People’s Daily on Monday, Cai Qi wrote of the “extreme importance of exercising full and rigorous party self-governance to achieve the economic and social development goals of the 15th five-year plan period”. Cai, the fifth-ranking member of the Politburo Standing... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3331319/communist-party-discipline-key-meeting-chinas-5-year-plan-goals-cai-qi?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3331319/communist-party-discipline-key-meeting-chinas-5-year-plan-goals-cai-qi?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 03 Nov 2025 08:22:39 +0000 Vanessa Cai Vanessa Cai Super Typhoon Ragasa may have been the biggest storm of its kind in the world this year, but when it made landfall in mainland China last month, it left no fatalities in its wake. Rewind to 2018 when Mangkhut, the last super typhoon to hit Guangdong province, struck and at least four people were killed in southern China. Typhoon Hato also left nine dead in Guangdong in 2017, and Typhoon Fanapi caused 34 deaths in the coastal province in 2010. The contrast is even sharper when compared with the... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3327644/how-china-was-ready-super-typhoon-ragasa-and-what-still-needs-be-done?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3327644/how-china-was-ready-super-typhoon-ragasa-and-what-still-needs-be-done?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 02 Oct 2025 09:00:29 +0000 Alyssa Chen Alyssa Chen Competition, a struggling job market and immigration fears are fuelling criticism in China of the country’s new K visa programme, a scheme designed to attract foreign STEM talent. Unveiled in August and set to launch on Wednesday, the programme attracted an unexpected public backlash this week, with many voicing concerns about its potential impact on local employment and immigration. Public policy analysts said greater transparency, clearer messaging and strict oversight were needed to address... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3327415/chinas-new-k-visa-meant-lure-foreign-stem-talent-instead-its-drawn-criticism?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3327415/chinas-new-k-visa-meant-lure-foreign-stem-talent-instead-its-drawn-criticism?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 30 Sep 2025 14:00:12 +0000 Jean Iau Jean Iau Das still remembers an offhand remark from a former colleague who, upon seeing his hairy legs, said that they resembled a monkey’s. For the 30-year-old ethnic Indian Singaporean postgraduate student, who spoke to This Week in Asia under a pseudonym, the comment reflected a kind of casual insensitivity he said he had encountered as a racial minority in Singapore. “I would ascribe the confidence of saying such things without having to endure a blowback or to blow it off as a joke to Chinese... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3320004/does-chinese-privilege-exist-singapore-study-finds-views-differ-age-and-race?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3320004/does-chinese-privilege-exist-singapore-study-finds-views-differ-age-and-race?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 29 Jul 2025 09:56:25 +0000 Jean Iau Jean Iau A marquee visit by Singapore Prime Minister Lawrence Wong to China this week has underscored a push by Southeast Asian countries for multilateralism amid uncertainty over America’s commitment to the region and free trade. Observers say Wong’s comments during his five-day trip, particularly at the World Economic Forum in Tianjin, or so-called Summer Davos, are aligned with the regional agenda of Asean members in recent years. But even as Chinese President Xi Jinping called for his country and... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3315974/china-bridge-builder-singapore-champions-multilateral-world?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3315974/china-bridge-builder-singapore-champions-multilateral-world?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 26 Jun 2025 12:24:52 +0000