Mineral resources
South East Asia possesses some important metal minerals and fossil fuels.
It is the largest producer of tin. The tin producing belt located in the granitic and placer deposits of the Malaya peninsula and adjacent islands, is the most productive and accessible in the world. Other important minerals found in large quantities include iron ore, (The Philippine and the Malay peninsula) manganese, (The Philippines and Indo-China) and tungite (Burma and Thailand). Significant minerals in lesser quantities include the following
Gold (kuching), Mala (Pahang), Western Sumatra and Philippines (Luzon)
Bauxite Sarawak (Kuching), South Eastern Johore and Si Medan (Malaya)
Copper, Zinc and chromium scattered widely in South East Asia.
Fuel Resources: Coal is found in exploitable quantities in the Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam but only the deposits of Tonkin are ample enough for the requirements of industrialization. Petroleum exists in greater quantities in the Indonesian Archipelago and along the northern coast of Borneo. Seria in Brunei, Miri in northern Sarawak and Lutong, oil fields of Kalimanton prove the potentiality of the Sunda shelf. Faster economic growth may be anticipated throughout the region if offshore drilling of oil in the Sunda shelf shows large workable reserves.
Development. ASEAN (Association of South-East Asian Nations) is a political-economic organization. Its aim is to accelerate the economic development through cooperative trade and shared projects. Thailand, Philippines and Malaysia were the original members and Indonesia and Singapore joined in the 1967. Mekong river project is very much similar to Tennesses Valley Authority (T.V.A.) of U.S.A. Asian Development Bank and other regional financial institutions try to promote economic development.
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