The proceedings, copublished by the Asian Center (AC) and the Political Economy Program of the Center for Integrative and Development Studies (PEP-CIDS), presents the “Interrogating Globalization in the Asian Context” public lecture series, launched by the AC to commemorate its 65th anniversary on 29 November 2021. The series exemplifies both the AC’s and PEP-CIDS’s pursuit of the University’s mission to promote evidence-based policy advocacy and research.
The series was launched in recognition of the need for the Philippines and other developing countries in the region and beyond to critically examine the dominant development narrative that has freemarket economics at its core. Amidst the devastation brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic on peoples’ lives and livelihoods, there is a need to reexamine the neoliberal agenda and neoclassical economics that have dominated the development discourse, policymaking, and programs at the national and global levels.