"Papua New Guinea has the appropriate technology and infrastructure to support the development of a mobile money system that can serve the people of the country, the vast majority of whom are based in rural areas, according to a new report. There is tremendous potential for mobile money systems to have a positive impact on peoples' lives, making them more financially secure and giving them tools to build more sustainable livelihoods.

The report outlines how a mobile money system might develop in PNG, what existing networks it might use for 'cash in' and 'cash out' services, and how mobile money might help individuals, companies and government alike to lower costs and increase security linked to the movement of money."

"Light engineering industries form an important sector of the economy in Bangladesh in terms of the number of units, employment and annual turnover. The sector reportedly provides employment to some 2 million people. According to a recent report, export of light engineering equipment earned $220 million and $189 million in 2007-08 and 2008-09, respectively. But the potential of the sector cannot be fully utilized for lack of capital and support services. In spite of having a large number of experienced technical hands, the sector cannot make innovations as they use age-old machinery.

Bangladesh has hardly any heavy industry. The country with about 30 million unemployed people needs labor-intensive industries. Light engineering industries are specially suitable for their high labor intensity, innovativeness and low capital investment."

"India's gold reserves are just 3.5 percent of its foreign exchange reserves. The instability of major reserve currencies has cost the country dear and a more active official gold reserves policy would have paid rich dividends, says an expert. India has all along been the largest market in the world for gold. Yet, for many years, policymakers have denigrated the proclivity of the masses to buy and hoard gold.

Developing countries generally hold only a small proportion of their reserves in gold. India's gold reserves were built up largely through the transfer of confiscated gold by the government to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). With the liberalization of the gold policy in 1991, the supply of confiscated gold dried up and the RBI's gold reserves have been stagnant for a number of years, at 357.7 tons."

"The latest move in Indonesia to scrap duties for imported machinery and raw materials for seven vital industries will certainly be a welcome boost for business. The regulation covers transportation, telecommunications, public health, tourism and culture, as well as supporting services for mining, construction and ports and harbors.

The new facility is part of the government's Rp 73.3 trillion ($7.9 billion) fiscal stimulus package for this year and will stay in effect for two years. Indonesia has long been known as a high-cost economy due to the layers of duties and other types of fees levied on businesses. The exemption of the 5 percent import duty on these vital industries is a welcome start to lowering business costs, but more still needs to be done."

"In PRC, many people mistakenly equate the 'public service' character of the healthcare sector to public ownership of healthcare providers, insisting the long-established monopolistic position of public hospitals should be further consolidated. This is in stark contrast to the fact that hardly any attention has been paid to the development of private hospitals in the past.

Public providers fail to deliver the widely-expected 'public services.' In some rural, mountainous and outlying regions, people have no access to even basic medical services given the small number of public healthcare providers, let alone specialized care from the poorly-equipped hospitals."

"Viet Nam has banned the use of rice fields for golf courses, especially those that yield two crops a year. Protected forest areas and those already zoned for industrial and urban areas should also be prohibited, the prime minister told the Ministry of Planning and Investment that is drafting a golf course zoning plan until 2020.

He also said that work on a golf course investment project should be completed no later than four years after it is licensed. The prime minister said that low-yield land that only offers one rice crop a year could be considered provided such areas do not occupy more than five percent of the golf course. This is an attempt to deal with the fact that many golf course investors spend most of the allotted land on real estate projects as the leasing fees for land for golf courses are often cheaper."

"Researchers recently reviewed 500 studies from around the world and took into account the difficulty of accessing new oil fields as well as growing demand. The researchers' finding: oil will begin running out before 2030. What leverage the Philippine government used to have in the field of renewable energy it has surrendered to private interests. For instance, it sold off the country's biggest producer of geothermal energy in order to bridge its budgetary deficit.

Developing alternative energy sources should be premised on the fact that the world is set to run out of petroleum in the not too distant future. Experts projected that as soon as oil begins to run out it will 'make energy more expensive, sparking a knock-on effect on industry and economies around the world.' "

"The business community in Pakistan has strongly resented the government's decision of increasing the power tariff from January, saying the move will bring already ailing industries to the verge of total collapse. The government would increase the power tariff by 18 percent in two phases next year, 12 percent in January and six percent in April, under the program.

The hike in power tariffs would badly hit industrial and business concerns, which are already in the doldrums, due to the increase in the cost of manufacturing and doing business owing to the multiplicity of taxes and levies and excessive utility tariffs. The export-oriented industry would be the worst sufferer as it would not feasibly materialize its export orders resulting in a wider gap to fill fixed export targets as announced in the trade policy."

"The Indian government is under pressure from the domestic textile mills lobby to ban raw cotton exports. A subsidy on exports last year had put the mills under a great disadvantage, as they had to pay more for cotton than their competitors overseas. The effects of an embargo on raw cotton exports would be incalculable and may take a long time to correct. It would surely cause prices to depress and hurt cotton growers' interests. This should be avoided at all costs.

A brisk marketing activity alone can ensure that prices remain friendly to growers. Exports have ensured remunerative prices to growers and encouraged them to expand and consolidate the production base. In the last four years, cotton exporters have cultivated overseas markets many of which have now come to depend on supplies from India."

"Malaysia must move toward high quality economic growth based on productivity, technology, innovation and creativity to become a high income economy among developed countries, according to the Prime Minister's Department. To become a developed nation, Malaysia needs to increase the per capita income to $12,000 from the $7,000 at present.

Economic growth must also be spearheaded by a more dynamic private sector, especially in new areas. In 1997, private investment contributed to 32 percent of the country's gross domestic product (GDP). Since the Asian economic crisis, its contribution has declined significantly to less than 10 percent, among the lowest in this region."

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