Asia is a region of paradoxes and contrasts. The region as a whole has achieved unprecedented growth and development in past decades. Yet the general picture hides a great diversity of development experiences. Asia is increasingly playing the role of a global growth pole, and fast emerging as a manufacturing and information technology hub of the world economy. Yet more than 600 million people still live in absolute poverty, defined as less than $1 a day. Asia is the home of the giants China and India that are reshaping international business and the global economy. But they share this vast continent with the “Least Developed Economies” of Nepal and Lao PDR whose prospects for development remain far more limited. And a stable and tranquil Japan is worlds away from a fragile and troubled Afghanistan.
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