Thailand’s Automotive Manufacturing Corridor

 Strategy 2020 of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) recognizes the need for Asia and the Pacific to pursue “open regionalism,” keeping trade and investment links open with the rest of the world.1 ADB’s Strategy 2020 also aims to increase regional cooperation and integration (RCI) in all operational areas, and increase assistance for RCI to at least 30% of total activities by 2020. In view of the developments in the regional economic landscape, the ADB Midterm Review of Strategy 2020 highlighted the need for a "second generation RCI" agenda and reiterated the 30% target.2 This technical assistance (TA) will support the implementation of the midterm review’s recommendations by producing operationally-relevant knowledge work to guide ADB’s future operations in RCI. 

The TA will produce two major knowledge products: (i) a thematic study on economic corridors, which will feature country case studies on economic corridor development in Malaysia and Thailand; and (i) a background paper on the Future of RCI in Asia and the Pacific, which will incorporate the findings and recommendations of the thematic study. An inception workshop was held on 16 May 2016 at the ADB Headquarters Manila to kick off the research work.