‘Unbundlings’ and Development Strategies in ASEAN: Old Issues and New Challenges

Abstract

This paper extends the conceptual framework of ‘unbundlings’ proposed by Baldwin (2016) and tries to provide a starting point for reorganizing development strategies of ASEAN Member States (AMS). The AMS have largely been successful in utilizing the mechanics of the second unbundling with a reduction in communication costs; however, a lot of room still exists for exploiting its benefits. In addition, a new wave of the third unbundling, which comes with reduced face-to-face costs, has already arrived in ASEAN, and AMS must start incorporating it into their development strategies.