Droughts along the Mekong River threaten Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam and Thailand. Photo: Greenpeace / Vinai Dithajohn
Less developed countries in south-east Asia are well aware of the need to adopt green central banking policies given mounting climate threats but need more support to do so, including from their richer neighbours, say experts.
The first East and Southeast Asia Green Central Banking Scorecard analyses green monetary and financial regulation policies in the region and shows that the poorer countries in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) – including Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar – are only at the very early stages of exploring green central banking policies.
“Several of these countries face greater resource constraints … as well as deep social crises,” the report says. “These five countries have historically been subjected to long periods of colonialism, as well as damaging wars, which has impeded the development of their economies.”
Aziz Durrani, team lead for technical assistance at the Asean+3 Macroeconomic Research Office, said these countries are alert to the need to act on climate risks and are asking for support in areas like green procurement, sustainability and climate stress testing.
“They’re also suffering a lot from climate events, often having populations reliant on agriculture, farming and fisheries, and so if a climate disaster directly impacts such sectors, it’s going to create significant financial instability issues,” Durrani said.
Sayuri Shirai, professor of economics at Keio University and an advisor for sustainable policies at the Asian Development Bank Institute, said financial policymakers in these countries are often ahead of other ministries and the corporate sector in recognising the need to act.
“Most of them fully understand but it doesn’t mean they can implement because of a lack of understanding [elsewhere], for example among other ministries,” Shirai said.
She said there is a willingness to embrace global reporting standards produced by the International Sustainability Standards Board but a lack of capacity among companies means they struggle to adopt the standards within their businesses.
“When I look at the economic condition, it’s not really clear how much such requirements are enforceable because the companies have never calculated emissions and they aren’t used to preparing for such kinds of disclosure,” she said. “The companies have to understand why they have to disclose and what kind of benefits they can get.”
This is why these countries need more support from their neighbours, Positive Money says, especially given new tariffs imposed by US president Donald Trump. Support should also come in the form of reparations from former colonising states.
“Particularly given the prospect of diminished economic relationships with the United States, there is space for Asean countries to develop more mutually beneficial economic ties with their regional neighbours,” the report says. “Such strengthened relationships and support must extend to green finance.”
Shirai noted that Japan has long been helping other countries in the region collect greenhouse gas emissions data.
And Durrani said that China, Japan and South Korea are funding technical assistance for countries like Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam, including on issues related to climate sustainability, disaster risk insurance, greening the economy and helping institutions meet sustainability accounting standards.
This page was last updated May 27, 2026
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Emma Thomasson is a British journalist, consultant and trainer based in Berlin. She is an expert in economics, politics, business and technology. She previously worked for Reuters as a correspondent and bureau chief in Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands, South Africa and the UK.
