ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on Asean as a case for review because although there are many regional and subregional groupings in Asia, Asean is the longest running and most institutionally developed arrangement in Asia. There are differences between the activity-based programs supported by donors and the institution-initiated regional cooperation initiatives like the HPA and the Vientiane Action Program (VAP) of Asean. The main focus of the Hanoi Plan of Action (HPA) was, therefore, to hasten economic recovery and address the social impacts of the crisis. The context in which the VAP was formulated to continue the HPA has changed. The financial and economic crisis in 1997-98 prompted Asean to accelerate the implementation of Asean Free Trade Area (AFTA) twice. A common feature of both the HPA and VAP is that they encompass both cooperation and integration measures. The lack of clear success indicators, milestones, and defined targets in the HPA hampered the HPA monitoring system.
