Regional Surveillance for East Asia: How Can It Be Designed to Complement Global Surveillance?

This paper discusses conceptual and operational issues related to regional surveillance for East Asia, which is a topic that has assumed considerable prominence in recent months. The need for regional surveillance is both immediate and evolving. For the immediate need, a surveillance mechanism must cover the operational requirements of the Chiang Mai Initiative Multilateralization (CMIM) as a conditional lending facility. At the same time, it must also respond to East Asia’s evolving need for a formal framework of policy dialogue and cooperation as economic integration deepens and macroeconomic interdependence strengthens. The paper discusses six principles that can help guide the design of an effective regional surveillance mechanism for East Asia: (i) avoid duplication with other organizations, (ii) clearly define the purpose of surveillance, (iii) centralize surveillance activities in a single organizational unit, (iv) use objective indicators to inform analysis, (v) design the governance structure to ensure independence, and (vi) provide analysis and recommendations directly to senior policymakers.