Lifestyle

We’re ending the second full year of Covid-19, and it stirs a strange feeling that these two years felt so long, yet seem to have passed by in a blink of an eye. In the past year, we’ve seen vaccination programs roll out in our countries and the opening of borders within or around countries are as if welcoming a ray of hope for some form of normalcy - whatever that means.

We surveyed N=1000 respondents each in Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, and The Philippines to find out their outlook for 2022 and some of the concerns they have.

People in SEA are hopeful for next year, but remain cautious

Hope emerged as the top emotion that people feel towards 2022 for most countries, The Philippines in particular (41%). While people are hopeful that the Covid-19 situation will improve, they are also reserved about it - uncertainty is also one of the top 3 voted emotions in most SEA countries, particularly in Singapore (29%), Thailand (23%) and Malaysia (11%).

Economic outlook positive, but people are remaining cautious

The state of the respective local economies ranked among the top 5 concerns Southeast Asians have for 2022, which also includes impact on household income, uncertainty over how long Covid-19 will last and the health of loved ones. Among them, Thais are most concerned about the local economy, and household income even.

Yet, the economic outlook of respondents somewhat mirrors their general outlook for the new year - hopeful yet cautious. At least 6 in 10 for most countries, except for Thailand (33%), indicated that they think that their local economy will improve a little or a lot next year. Perhaps, people are not expecting the economic impacts of Covid-19 to be resolved completely next year, but there is definitely light at the end of the tunnel.

At the same time, sending intent remains conservative. In Singapore and Thailand, only 28% and 31% said that they are likely to spend more next year, in contrast to Vietnam where over half (54%) intend to spend more next year.

Travel intentions low among Singaporeans and Thais

The latter half of the year has seen multiple countries opening up their borders to leisure travel, with special travel lanes set up for fully-vaccinated persons. However, intentions to travel overseas in the first half of 2022 remain especially low among those in Singapore (29%) and Thailand (26%), despite the former having set up VTL (Vaccinated Travel Lanes) with over 10 countries.

The lacklustre attitudes towards overseas travel could be due to the health risks of Covid-19 and uncertainty of the ever-changing regulations in different countries. Not to mention, the administrative processes of travel lanes can get rather pricey and time-consuming. Another contributing factor could also be individuals’ vaccination status, which ultimately determines whether they qualify for such travel lanes; as of writing on 23 November 2021, only about 56% of the Thai population is fully vaccinated.

Mental health remains a challenge for many

Much has been said about the impact of Covid-19 on mental health, and across all 6 countries, mental health emerged as one of the top 3 challenges they faced in 2021, and still maintains its place for 2022 outlook. However, the percentages are lower for the latter, which may point towards optimism that 2022 will perhaps be less stressful for many.

Moving forward to 2022

2021 has been filled with progresses and setbacks, and as countries inch towards finding success in living with Covid-19, people in Southeast Asia are remaining hopeful that we will be able to overcome the challenges ahead.


Southeast Asians are hopeful for a better year in 2022

Hope emerged as the top emotion that people feel towards 2022 for most countries, The Philippines in particular (41%).
Tan Yan Rong
December 16, 2021
MINS READ
Southeast Asians are hopeful for a better year in 2022
Illustration:
Noe Garin

We’re ending the second full year of Covid-19, and it stirs a strange feeling that these two years felt so long, yet seem to have passed by in a blink of an eye. In the past year, we’ve seen vaccination programs roll out in our countries and the opening of borders within or around countries are as if welcoming a ray of hope for some form of normalcy - whatever that means.

We surveyed N=1000 respondents each in Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, and The Philippines to find out their outlook for 2022 and some of the concerns they have.

People in SEA are hopeful for next year, but remain cautious

Hope emerged as the top emotion that people feel towards 2022 for most countries, The Philippines in particular (41%). While people are hopeful that the Covid-19 situation will improve, they are also reserved about it - uncertainty is also one of the top 3 voted emotions in most SEA countries, particularly in Singapore (29%), Thailand (23%) and Malaysia (11%).

Economic outlook positive, but people are remaining cautious

The state of the respective local economies ranked among the top 5 concerns Southeast Asians have for 2022, which also includes impact on household income, uncertainty over how long Covid-19 will last and the health of loved ones. Among them, Thais are most concerned about the local economy, and household income even.

Yet, the economic outlook of respondents somewhat mirrors their general outlook for the new year - hopeful yet cautious. At least 6 in 10 for most countries, except for Thailand (33%), indicated that they think that their local economy will improve a little or a lot next year. Perhaps, people are not expecting the economic impacts of Covid-19 to be resolved completely next year, but there is definitely light at the end of the tunnel.

At the same time, sending intent remains conservative. In Singapore and Thailand, only 28% and 31% said that they are likely to spend more next year, in contrast to Vietnam where over half (54%) intend to spend more next year.

Travel intentions low among Singaporeans and Thais

The latter half of the year has seen multiple countries opening up their borders to leisure travel, with special travel lanes set up for fully-vaccinated persons. However, intentions to travel overseas in the first half of 2022 remain especially low among those in Singapore (29%) and Thailand (26%), despite the former having set up VTL (Vaccinated Travel Lanes) with over 10 countries.

The lacklustre attitudes towards overseas travel could be due to the health risks of Covid-19 and uncertainty of the ever-changing regulations in different countries. Not to mention, the administrative processes of travel lanes can get rather pricey and time-consuming. Another contributing factor could also be individuals’ vaccination status, which ultimately determines whether they qualify for such travel lanes; as of writing on 23 November 2021, only about 56% of the Thai population is fully vaccinated.

Mental health remains a challenge for many

Much has been said about the impact of Covid-19 on mental health, and across all 6 countries, mental health emerged as one of the top 3 challenges they faced in 2021, and still maintains its place for 2022 outlook. However, the percentages are lower for the latter, which may point towards optimism that 2022 will perhaps be less stressful for many.

Moving forward to 2022

2021 has been filled with progresses and setbacks, and as countries inch towards finding success in living with Covid-19, people in Southeast Asia are remaining hopeful that we will be able to overcome the challenges ahead.