The Tale of Two Countries: Elite Stake and Development By Anis Chowdhury Copyright © 2026 IPS-Inter Press Service. All rights reserved. -

https://www.ipsnews.net/2026/07/the-tale-of-two-countries-elite-stake-and-development/?utm_source=email_marketing&utm_admin=146128&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Autonomous_Weapons_The_Wave_of_the_Future_in_Military_Conflicts_Worldwide_Europes_Funding_Question_P SYDNEY, Jul 14 2026 (IPS) - Philippines was the most advanced Southeast Asian country with the highest per capita GDP until about the early 1960s. Its per capita GDP in purchasing power parity terms were about the same as South Korea’s and above that of Thailand in the early 1970s.The Nobel Laureate economist, Gunnar Myrdal, did not have much hope for “disease infested” Indonesia when in 1968 he published his famous Asian Drama: An Enquiry Into the Poverty of Nations. But Indonesia surged ahead since the late 1960s with growth acceleration exceeding that of Philippines; thus, eventually overtaking Philippines in GDP per capita in the mid-1980s. What factors separated Indonesia from Philippines? Copyright © 2026 IPS-Inter Press Service. All rights reserved. -