Atlas Network is pleased to announce the finalists for our 2025 Asia Liberty Award, which honors the region’s most outstanding policy accomplishments related to individual rights and economic freedom. The three finalists for this year’s award are The Indonesian Institute; Nepal’s Samriddhi Foundation; and Pakistan’s Experts Centre for Market and Policy Research.
The award winner will be announced at Asia Liberty Forum, which will be held on September 11th and 12th in Jakarta, Indonesia. The event is co-hosted with the Center for Indonesian Policy Studies (CIPS). More information can be found here.
Find out more about the three Asia Liberty Award finalists here:
Experts Centre for Market and Policy Research (ECMPR)
As Pakistan grapples with a historic energy crisis, with recurring blackouts, ongoing economic setbacks, and a widening gap between electricity supply and demand, ECMPR responded with the “EcoSolarize” project to unleash the country’s immense potential for solar energy. Through targeted advocacy and public engagement, EcoSolarize has helped scale back government overreach, reduced taxes and import duties on renewable energy equipment, encouraged investment in Pakistan’s energy sector, and reduced the risk of corruption. ECMPR’s project continues to promote affordability and accessibility to boost Pakistan’s electricity generation capacity at a time of population growth and sky-high demand. EcoSolarize has also led to the introduction of policy changes that empower individuals to purchase their own meters, eliminating intermediaries and associated potential for corruption. With a growing focus on solar installations for residential and commercial use, the project has gone a long way in making Pakistan’s energy sector more competitive, helping everyday citizens access electricity in a sustainable way.
Samriddhi Foundation
Nepal has a long history of excessive business regulation, leading to an economic environment where nearly half of the country’s companies are unregistered and over a quarter of workers are employed in the informal sector. To roll back Nepal’s burdensome regulatory regime, including the red tape of business licensing, the Samriddhi Foundation has championed pro-market amendments to existing legislation. By securing multi-partisan support for regulatory reform, the Foundation successfully worked with the Nepalese government to approve 11 key legislative amendments. This includes permitting greater foreign investment by companies in Nepal, simplifying the requirements for venture capital activity, and increasing options for employee ownership of private businesses—put together, the amendments mark a significant milestone for economic freedom in the country. Fostering collaboration across political parties through the “Nepal Leader’s Circle,” the Foundation has created a platform where Members of Parliament and private-sector leaders can come together to make the country’s business environment more formal and favorable than ever before—helping employers and employees alike.
The Indonesian Institute
To protect religious freedom, The Indonesian Institute addressed the country’s restrictive regulations on the construction and renovation of houses of worship. For the first time in the country’s history, the Institute revealed the intolerance and discriminatory provisions of current regulations, urging the Indonesian government to revise policies that make it more difficult to build religious institutions. These policies included a requirement that religious minority communities obtain the permission of the majority population before building their houses of worship, severely curtailing the construction of churches and other institutions. From policy research to focus group discussions and press conferences, the Institute earned an opportunity to join the Civil Society Task Force for Freedom of Religion and Belief, where they shared best practices for religious freedom. The Institute also made it a priority to hold audiences with key government institutions, securing an invitation from the Vice Presidential Office to formulate priority issues for the next presidential term. This includes participation in the drafting of a presidential decree on interfaith harmony and conflict management within the country’s religious societies. As a result of the Institute’s collaborative efforts, religious freedom became an integral part of the national conversation in Indonesia, reducing conflict between religious societies and laying the foundation for regulatory reform that makes it easier to worship in all localities.
The Asia Liberty Award is part of the Templeton Freedom Award prize program sponsored by Templeton Religion Trust—named for the late investor and philanthropist Sir John Templeton. In addition to Asia, the program sponsors awards in Africa, Europe, Latin America, North America, and the Middle East and North Africa. Its grand prize, the Templeton Freedom Award, is presented annually at Atlas Network’s Liberty Forum & Freedom Dinner in New York City. This year, the prize program will award $270,000 in grants to high-achieving organizations that make innovative contributions to economic freedom and human progress.
“From energy crises and oppressive regulatory regimes to lingering obstacles for religious freedom, Asia faces a wide range of public policy challenges, but the continent’s leading free-market think tanks continue to step up,” said Atlas Network CEO Brad Lips. “From Indonesia to Nepal and Pakistan, think tanks are serving as ‘do tanks’ that have made outstanding contributions to the freedom movement and the cause of liberty worldwide. Atlas Network is proud to support these dedicated leaders in Asia and around the world, and we hope that their contributions will inspire a new generation of freedom champions everywhere—especially where liberty is needed most.”