An emerging Asian model of governance and transnational knowledge transfer : an introduction

Abstract

Although Asia has a long history of governance practice, its modern governance has been disproportionately influenced by the Western models. Given the shifting global political economic landscape and a re-emerging Asia in recent decades, there is an urgent need to explore the potential of Asian models of governance. Could there be an Asian model of governance that is distinct from the Western ones? If so, what are the key characteristics? In conjunction with the special issue, this introduction article attempts to partially answer these questions. Based upon the existing literature and critical reflections, the authors propose a preliminary analytical framework for an emerging Asian model of governance by incorporating two interlinked phenomena: shared cultural, historical norms and trajectories, and intra-regional transnational knowledge transfer. Six articles constituting the special issue are also briefly introduced within this framework, with the aim of contributing to a better understanding of Asian governance experiences and theoretical debates on the evolving modes of public governance.