Collectively, the countries that make up the ACIAR region of East and Southeast Asia are the most populous in the world and the region is regarded an economic powerhouse. Ten of the countries in Southeast Asia are members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and engage closely in terms of trade and investment with countries in east Asia, including China.

Since 2009, China has become the largest trading partner of ASEAN nations and is also one of the most important sources of investment. Economic growth in ASEAN economies continues to demonstrate resilience with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) forecasting GDP growth rates of close to 5%. Noting some exceptions, such as Laos, which is experiencing high inflation and low growth in GDP.

With more than 100 million hectares of agricultural land, the ASEAN countries collectively are a major producer, supplier and exporter of crops, grains (including rice) and livestock products. Although agriculture only contributes to around 10% of total GDP of ASEAN nations, it accounts for approximately one-third of total employment. Given its significant role, the development of the food, agriculture and forestry sectors is vital to ensuring equitable and inclusive growth in the region.

Women’s participation in equitable agricultural value chains is a prominent goal within ASEAN as an approach to addressing gender gaps in economic spheres. Food security, food safety and better nutrition remain priority concerns within the region. Overarching these priorities are the shared impacts of climate change, with increasing frequency of extreme heat, floods and storms, as well as less reliable and predictable rainfall patterns resulting in the loss of agricultural production and sustainability.

Drivers of regional collaboration

The principal driver of regional collaboration in the ACIAR region of East and Southeast Asia is ASEAN, which for more than 50 years has addressed shared challenges and engaged with trade and development partners, including Australia and China. Recently, regional collaboration has been driven by critical factors such as the COVID-19 pandemic, geopolitics and transboundary concerns.

Australia has worked closely with ASEAN since 1974, when it became the first Dialogue Partner of the association. While commemorating 50 years of dialogue relations in March 2024, ASEAN and Australia reaffirmed their commitment to the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and a plan of action to implement the partnership, for the period 2025 to 2029.

Trade and investment are the major drivers of economic growth in the region, aided by overseas development assistance. The ASEAN-led Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement came into force in January 2022 with the aim of strengthening regional economic integration and improving access to markets. In the agricultural research sector, ACIAR is supporting regional collaboration through support of the Asia–Pacific Association of Agricultural Research Institutions (APAARI).

Shared concerns about imminent and increasing threats posed by climate change have resulted in ASEAN creating a ‘framework of ASEAN community building, with strategies and actions to enhance regional and international cooperation in supporting adaptation’.

In the field of agricultural research for development, regional cooperation plays a significant role, particularly regarding increasing resilience and adaptation to climate change, natural disasters and other shocks. Southeast Asia is one of the most natural disaster-prone regions of the world. Natural disasters threaten food security and rural livelihoods and have economic consequences for the whole region, so disaster mitigation is a shared goal among neighbouring countries. The ASEAN Declaration of ‘One ASEAN, One Response’ aims to increase the speed, scale and solidarity of disaster response in the region.

Cross-border challenges such as plant and animal biosecurity remain prominent and are driving efforts for regional integration. In the Mekong region, plant diseases have recently spread across borders, destroying crops of cassava, banana and plantation forests.

Regional ACIAR program

ACIAR engagement in the East and Southeast Asia region is strongly bilateral, based on robust partnerships with national research systems, long-standing diplomatic connections, and sustained development collaborations with Australia. However, there is a growing trend towards regional collaboration between countries facing shared challenges, particularly in relation to climate change. This is consistent with the research partnerships under ASEAN, which acknowledge that collaboration among member states is a sensible path towards addressing common challenges in the region.

The ASEAN drive towards regional economic integration and connectivity will increase demand from individual countries and regional bodies for research support that harmonises approaches to shared agricultural issues, including biosecurity, food safety and climate resilience. ACIAR contributes to this by funding regional research collaboration and through our support and chairing of APAARI.

Trilateral collaboration and new partnership models are emerging for ACIAR in the region. Driving these new partnership models are greater capacities that can be achieved when resources are pooled. This is translating into substantial co-investment from partners such as Vietnam, Indonesia and the Philippines. While bilateral relationships remain the predominant model for development cooperation in the region, trilateral collaboration supported by ACIAR is increasingly possible and desired by partner countries.

In Southeast Asia we work primarily with 7 partner countries. However, we also work with development and coordinating organisations based in other countries in the region, collaborating on issues and programs of regional significance. For example, in recent decades Thailand has transitioned from aid recipient to aid donor. Thailand hosts regional organisations of relevance to ACIAR programs, including APAARI (page 16), the Asian Institute of Technology and the FAO regional office. We also include Thai expertise on projects of regional significance when opportunities arise.

Current and proposed projects in the East and Southeast Asia region, 2023–24