Rethinking Canada’s engagement in Southeast Asia: lessons from the Canada-ASEAN Centre

ABSTRACT

One objective of Canada’s Indo-Pacific Strategy is to strengthen people to-people ties between Canada and the members states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). The Singapore-based Canada-ASEAN Centre, founded in 1989, shared a similar objective during its years of operation. This article revisits the experience of the Canada-ASEAN Centre to highlight lessons relevant for Canada’s renewed engagement in Southeast Asia. These include being attuned to local needs and nurturing sustainable networks between individuals and institutions. Expanding academic exchanges and collaboration in science and technology can deepen Canadian understanding of Southeast Asia, foster innovation, and help tackle global challenges. The Centre’s experience also illustrates the value of entrepreneurial prospecting to identify areas for collaboration, as well as securing long-term financial support and maintaining focus on strategic interests during political transitions. Equally important are careful coordination among stakeholders and a clear-eyed assessment of the competition in Southeast Asia.

RÉSUMÉ

L'un des objectifs de la stratégie indopacifique du Canada est de renforcer les liens interpersonnels entre le Canada et les pays membres de l'association des nations de l'Asie du Sud-Est (ANASE). Le Centre Canada-ANASE, basé à Singapour et fondé en 1989, a partagé un objectif similaire au cours de ses années d'activités. Cet article revient sur l'expérience du Centre Canada-ANASE pour en tirer des leçons utiles au renouvellement de l'engagement du Canada en Asie du Sud-Est. Il s'agit entre autres d'être à l'écoute des besoins locaux et d'entretenir des réseaux durables entre les individus et les institutions. Le développement des échanges universitaires et de la collaboration dans le domaine des sciences et des technologies peut permettre au Canada d'approfondir sa compréhension de l'Asie du Sud-Est, de favoriser l'innovation et de contribuer à relever les défis mondiaux. L'expérience du Centre illustre également la valeur de la prospection entrepreneuriale pour identifier les domaines de collaboration, ainsi que garantir un soutien financier à long terme et maintenir l'attention sur les intérêts stratégiques pendant les transitions politiques. Une coordination minutieuse entre les parties prenantes et une évaluation lucide de la concurrence en Asie du Sud-Est sont tout aussi importantes.

KEYWORDS:

• Canada
• ASEAN
• Southeast Asia
• academic exchanges
• science and technology collaboration

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 Research on the Canada-ASEAN Centre was based on limited documentation available and on personal recollections of people involved with the Centre, including those of the author, who was its first program officer.

2 Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and (after 1995) Vietnam.

3 The Centre’s staffing fluctuated over time, but typically involved two CIDA officers, six locally engaged staff, an executive director and program consultants hired locally. The Centre outsourced the academic support program to the Canadian Council for Southeast Asian Studies.

4 This relates to the standard of living in Singapore and Malaysia being higher than elsewhere in Southeast Asia, and visa implications.