ASEAN-Canada Research Partnership

The ASEAN-Canada Research Partnership will deepen Canada-ASEAN relations through research and policy dialogue on issues of mutual regional interest.

The recipient organization, the Centre for Non-Traditional Security Studies at the S. Rajaratnam School of
International Studies at Nanyang Technological University of Singapore will work with the Institute of Asian Research at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada on a series of joint activities that includes research, capacity building, publishing, and policy forums.

Using expertise from both ASEAN countries and Canada, the project aims to increase knowledge about ASEAN regional integration and its impacts. Its goal is to strengthen ties between Southeast Asian and Canadian institutions, including government and ASEAN agencies, research institutes, civil society, and the private sector. It will examine topics such as: growth in the ASEAN economic area, persistent - and potentially destabilizing - inequalities within the region; the way environment and energy choices merge and conflict; and the implications of ageing populations for labour markets, health and health care, and social services.

The project represents IDRC's contribution to the ASEAN-Canada Plan of Action to implement the Joint Declaration on ASEAN-Canada Enhanced Partnership, 2010-2015. It shifts the focus from traditional aid projects to the building of knowledge and experience among peers. The work is expected to lead to an informal research network among think tanks, academic institutions, government officials, multilateral agencies, and others.