Media Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Singapore, Monday, 3 January 2020 – The Singapore Institute of International Affairs (SIIA), Singapore’s oldest think tank, was ranked the top think tank in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and Asia across several categories in the 2019 Global Go To Think Tank Index released on Thursday, 30 January 2020.
The SIIA clinched the top spot in the South, Southeast Asia and the Pacific (excluding India) category for the first time. This category included renown think tanks from Australia, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand.
For the eighth consecutive year, the SIIA also maintained its ranking as the top think tank in ASEAN in the global ranking of think tanks excluding those in the United States (US). Overall, it came in 42nd, climbing two spots from last year. In the same category, the SIIA was ranked top 10 in Asia.
Similarly, the SIIA maintained its position as the best independent think tank in Asia for the fourth consecutive year. It ranked 24th overall and was the only Singapore think tank that made it to the list.
Chairman of the SIIA, Associate Professor Simon Tay, said, “We are living in the age of fake news and manipulation. More than ever, people are looking for independent sources of insights and policy implications based on hard analysis. As the role of think tanks grow, the SIIA strives to continue being a credible voice of ASEAN on international issues.”
Centred around ASEAN focused themes, the Institute has consistently aimed to deliver policy analysis in international affairs and on issues driving environmental sustainability. This year, the SIIA is committed to strengthen its work in analysing emerging trends in the key ASEAN economies and their relations to major partners such as China, Japan, the US and the European Union (EU) as well as ASEAN in the rules-based international order. While the SIIA has focused its sustainability work on transboundary haze, it will analyse it from a climate change perspective. More importantly, the SIIA will also study the role Singapore, as a finance and trading hub, can play in mitigating transboundary haze.
Commenting on the results of the ranking survey, the SIIA’s Director of Operations, Ms Seraphim Cheong, said, “We are humbled that our work in ASEAN and sustainability issues has been consistently recognised. Beyond the recognition, we also need to ensure that the work that we do continues to be relevant so that corporates and citizens can be guided into making discerning decisions. Leveraging our policy analysis to engage them will be critical as we continue to grow.”
The annual Global Go To Think Tank Index ranks think tanks around the world based on criteria including the commitment of their leadership, quality and reputation of their staff as well as their research and analysis. A total of 8,100 think tanks and over 3,974 university faculties and administrators, journalists, policy-makers, think tank scholars and executives, and donors worldwide participated in the 2019 rankings. The peer review survey is in its 12th year.
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About the Singapore Institute of International Affairs
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Established in 1962, the Singapore Institute of International Affairs (SIIA) is a non-profit and independent think tank committed to producing policy analysis, fostering in-depth dialogues and bridging gaps between policymakers, private sector decision-makers and experts to shape public policy and social responses. Centred around ASEAN focused themes, the institute aims to deliver policy analysis in international affairs and on issues driving environmental sustainability. The SIIA has been consistently ranked as one of the leading think tanks in Southeast Asia and the Pacific, in the Global Go-To Think Tank Index by the University of Pennsylvania. Since 2017, the SIIA was ranked the No. 1 independent think tank in Asia. It was also recognised as one of the top 50 think tanks globally, excluding the United States of America.
