Asia’s year in review: Who had it good — and who had it bad — in 2024

Curtis S. Chin, a former U.S. ambassador to the Asian Development Bank, is managing director of advisory firm RiverPeak Group. Jose B. Collazo is an analyst focusing on the Indo-Pacific region. Follow them on X at @CurtisSChin and @JoseBCollazo.

Like the year before, 2024 seemingly offered up little to celebrate for many across the vast Indo-Pacific region. Amid uncertain economies and enduring geographic tensions, however, there was still hope and joy to be found. 

Who had it bad and who had it good in Asia and the Pacific region in 2024?

As the region looks to the return of President Donald Trump to the White House in 2025 and to what might well be a tumultuous Year of the Snake in the lunar calendar, we take a look at the year that was.

In a region well-known for natural disasters that make global headlines, 2024 saw the addition of thousands of "climate casualties" across Asia. 

Unlike 20 years ago, when the devastating Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami of December 26, 2004 killed more than 200,000 people, 2024 was a year of mounting casualties from typhoons, floods, heat waves and droughts. 

In one example, Super Typhoon Yagi, one of the strongest storms to hit Southeast Asia in years, left a path of death and devastation in November. From the Philippines through southern China and Vietnam, and onto Laos, Thailand, and Myanmar, the storm killed hundreds and devastated communities and livelihoods.  

Floods from the yearly monsoon rains also left millions stranded and hundreds dead in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Pakistan, India, and Nepal, making this year one of the deadliest in recent memory. And, if it was not record-breaking rainfall, it was drought accompanied by scorching temperatures leading to months of severe water shortages.

With extreme weather events seemingly more the norm and their victims too often increasingly unnoticed and forgotten, the region's climate casualties garner the dubious distinction of Worst Year in Asia.  

Where have all the babies gone? In most of East Asia, aspiring grandparents and other fans of new born babies faced another tough year in 2024. Record-low fertility rates continued to prove a major concern in all major economies, including in South Korea, China and Japan as well as Taiwan and Hong Kong.  

Fertility rates remained well below the needed level for a stable if not growing population. The long-term economic consequences could well be significant as nations contend with shrinking workforces and aging populations. 

Women across East Asia are having few to no children. Changing gender roles, long work hours, the high cost of housing, education and childcare are all cited as some of the factors behind this demographic trend. 

At year-end, South Korea was also officially declared a "super-aged" society, a concept defined by the United Nations, as the proportion of citizens aged 65 or older now accounts for 20% of its population, according to Korea's Ministry of the Interior and Safety.   

From India and Japan to South Korea and Indonesia, and Pakistan and Sri Lanka to Taiwan, elections dominated 2024. At year's end, however, it has proven a decidedly mixed year for not just incumbent politicians but for democracy itself.  

The year began with Bangladesh's long-time leader and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina retaining power in an election boycotted by the opposition, only to resign and flee the country after weeks of student protests following the elections. 

Infamously, the year ends with South Korea's President Yoon Suk-Yeol declaring martial law eight months after his party lost big in general elections, only to see the National Assembly successfully move both to force the lifting of martial law and to impeach him. The president's fate now sits with the Constitutional Court.  

Yet, elections cemented a vibrant democracy in Taiwan, forced India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi to govern with a coalition, surprised the Pakistan incumbent, and heralded in the peaceful transition of presidential power in Indonesia to former General Prabowo Subianto. Diverse, mixed democratic trajectories for Asia's democracies characterized 2024. 

According to a recent count, more than 300 Korean movies and series are available on Netflix alone, including "Squid Game," Season 2. "Queen of Tears," a  romantic drama starring Kim Soo-hyun and Kim Ji-won, was a 2024 global sensation, clocking 690 million viewing hours on Netflix. And say hello to K-literature, following Korean author Han Kang in 2024 becoming the first Korean and first Asian woman to win the Nobel Prize for Literature.  

This tsunami of soft diplomacy that has elevated South Korea's global presence is also big business. The global economic benefit to Korea of "Hallyu" is now projected to hit $198 billion by 2030, according to a BusinessKorea report on a white paper released by TikTok and market research firm Kantar. 

Born this July at Thailand's Khao Kheow Open Zoo, the "hyper-viral" baby pygmy has seen her memes, photos and videos go global. 

Fan accounts on X, TikTok, and Facebook continue to  proliferate. And even NBC's long-running U.S. comedy show "Saturday Night Live" got in on the Moo Deng mania. Asian American star Bowen Yang impersonated the baby hippo on the show's "Weekend Update" segment,  lamenting the hazards of instant fame.

Adding to her fame, Moo Deng correctly predicted the winner of the 2024 U.S. presidential race, by selecting the fruit and vegetable plate bearing Trump's name over that of rival Kamala Harris. 

2024 might have been the Year of the Dragon in the lunar calendar, but it also was clearly the Year of the Hippo in the hearts and minds of Moo Deng fans in Asia and beyond. For bringing a bit of hope and joy to a region and world that could use a lot more good cheer, the designation of "Best Year in Asia" for 2024 goes to Moo Deng.  

Here's to a hopeful and joy-filled 2025.