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PENNSVALLEY
Lesson 68:
Natural Resources and Economy
of Southeast Asia
The Southeast Asian region is one of contrasts. Some nations are quite wealthy and have strong
economies.Singapore, Brunei,Malaysia, andThailandwould fall into thisgroup.Other nationsarevery
poor.Vietnam, Laos, East Timor, andCambodia are recovering from years of war.Some nations have
been developing their economies. Indonesia, thePhilippines, andBurma fall into this category.
Most of the economies of this region heavily depend upon the primary industries. That is, they
obtain rawmaterials for their products through farming, logging, fishing, or mining.
The vast majority of people live in villages and earn a living by means of subsistence farming,
except for Singapore and Brunei. Rice is themain crop grown for cash and daily needs.
Rice
grows
throughout the region, mainly in flooded rice paddies, except in Laos, where it is toomountainous.
In the highlands, people use a farming method known as “slash and burn.” They cut and burn
forests to cultivate the soil. After a few years theymove onto another section of land. In this way, the
forests start growing again. Terrace farming also is important in this region, particularly in the
Philippines.
Fishing
is vital for all nations that border on the sea.Timber is exported fromMyanmar, Malaysia,
and Indonesia. A variety of goods are made from timber, such as
wood products
and
paper
products
. In addition, the region is one of the largest producers of
rubber
(from trees) in theworld.
Southeast Asia is rich in metallic and non-metallic mineral resources.
Tin
is the region’s most
importantmetal.Many othermetals, suchas
gold
and
silver
, canbe foundhere.The regionhas large
reserves of
oil
and
natural gas
, especially in Myanmar, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Brunei. Brunei’s
wealth is based totally upon oil.Myanmar is known for some of the finest
gemstones
, such as ruby,
in theworld
In addition, some countries have a strong, developing manufacturing base. The economy of
Malaysia has grown in the manufacturing sector. Of all the products the country exports, 75 percent
are
finished products such as textiles, cars, electronics
, and
foods
. Thailand and Indonesia are
big producers of
electronic goods (computers)
. Indonesia also has an
aircraft
industry.
In the tertiary realm, Singapore is one of the world’s leading
financial
and
trade
centers. It is the
busiest shippingport in theworldwitha ship leavingor entering theport every threeminutes.
Tourism
is amajor business inThailand andSingapore. Singapore has a
subway
system.
Other highlights for the natural resources of the region are:
• All major cities of the region are located on rivers.
• Thailand is theworld’s largest producer of
pineapples
.
• Indonesia and thePhilippines are theworld’s largest producers of
coconuts
.
•Malaysia is the world’s largest producer of
palm oil
, which is used in cooking (soup) and
making soap.
• TheMekongRiver delta is one of the greatest rice growing regions.
• The northern regions of Myanmar, Laos, and Thailand grow two thirds of the world’s
opium
poppy
plants, which are used tomake heroin.
ACTIVITY 1:
Use the information above to answer the following questions.
1.Most people in the region earn a living bymeans of?
2.What is themajor crop grown in the region?
Southeast Asia
