ABSTRACT
Development administration was welcomed into newly independent countries of Southeast Asia after the Second World War as a vehicle for facilitating economic and social development. The rate and nature of its adoption varied between countries and have been mediated by factors such as resource endowment, development policies, political regimes, and history. Thus the contemporary profile of development administration in Southeast Asia varies significantly between countries in the region. The appreciation of the importance of development administration for improving human welfare and economic progress has never been stronger, with all the regions' countries currently engaged in a variety of reforms and innovations selected from a lengthening list of possible development administration initiatives.
