This book offers a unique collection of macro- and micro-level analyses on asset-based social development and compares and contrasts national social policies across the Asia Pacific region. Many asset-building policies and programmes have been undertaken in Asia, and innovative proposals continue to emerge. The contributions in this book present and assess this broad, often nuanced, and evolving landscape, and offer an insightful analysis of the evolution of asset-building policies, innovative programmes in rural populations, asset-based interventions to facilitate the development and well-being of children, as well as case studies on new, ground-breaking asset-building projects.

Introduction Part I: Asset-Building Policies 1. Housing Policy and Asset Building: Exploring the Role of Home Ownership in East Asian Social Policy 2. Australian Superannuation: An Example of Asset Building in Practice 3. Malaysia's Employees Provident Fund and Social Security 4. Asset-Based Policies in Korea: Expansion, Challenges, and Future Directions 5. A Comparative Study on Asset-Building Policy Diffusion in Korea and Taiwan 6. The Evolution of Singapore's Social Security System 7. Can Singapore's Central Provident Fund Still Meet Retirement Income Needs? Part II: Asset Building and Diverse Populations 8. A Review of Features and Outcomes of the Hong Kong Child Development Fund 9. Savings Accounts for Youth: Initial Findings from Nepal 10. Financial Access and Economic Participation of Youth with Disabilities in China: An Exploratory Study 11. Asset Poverty and Happiness in Urban China 12. The Hutubi Model: What Have We Learned? 13. Rebuilding Cultural Assets in an Ethnic-Minority Village in Yunnan Province, China 14. Asset Building and Livelihood Rebuilding in Post-Disaster Sichuan, China 15. Social Innovations on Land Use in Rural China: An Asset-Based Analysis16. Asset-Building Innovations: Section I: A savings-led HIV-prevention intervention for women engaging in sex work in Mongolia Section II: An asset-building pilot for vulnerable children: Light of Hope Saving Program in Lamphun Province, Thailand Section III:Asset building for home ownership in the Nong Kaem Community, Thailand 17. Reflections and Conclusions