Stephen Norris is a Principal and Senior South-East Asia Analyst covering Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam. He writes daily analyses for Control Risks’ subscription services, and provides regular media commentary on political, economic and security issues in South-East Asia.

Stephen’s recent consulting experience includes:

• Conducted security, political and regulatory threat assessments for multinational resources companies active across Indonesia, including several undergoing complex contractual negotiations with the central government, and others facing serious security issues in Kalimantan, Sulawesi, Papua and Aceh.
• Assessed the security and operational risks facing companies with long-term resources and agriculture interests in the Southern Philippines, including analysis of local political dynamics and capricious regulatory turns, communist-, separatist- and Islamist extremist-related security threats, or community opposition to large-scale investments.
• Provided short- and long-term political forecasting assisting companies based in Thailand to foresee and plan for various possible political crises related to future changes in the country, which carry high risks of violence and business disruption.
• Analysed factional infighting at the top of the Vietnamese political system, and of the associated risks that acrimonious leadership change, and judicial and regulatory politicisation, could entail for companies in heavily politically connected sectors such as banking or telecommunications.

Prior to joining Control Risks, Stephen was based in Taiwan as a political and business reporter for The China Post and as a freelance writer for the Taipei Times (national daily newspapers). Stephen also previously worked for Jane’s Information Group, a consultancy focused on defence, terrorism and intelligence issues.

Stephen holds an undergraduate degree in sociology with politics from the University of Leicester and a master’s of science in Chinese business and politics from Sheffield University. He speaks conversational Mandarin.