One of the basis of intellectual capacity especially in Asian countries like here in the Philippines is how great you are at speaking English and other foreign languages. This is sad, to be honest.
English is not my native language and I often make mistakes in my grammar but I think as long as you're able to deliver the context of the things you want to say, it's already enough. Native English speakers won't mind as long they understand us.
Yep, most South East Asian countries values that skill. Even a lot of jobs requires its applicant to at least know basic level of English. Though in some cases, flawless English is needed in context of academia but when it comes to getting by when traveling, as long as the context is understood then that's not a problem much :)