Aid and development
Bilateral development assistance
New community fisheries project to preserve Mekong's biodiversity
A new community fisheries project in the Mekong River was launched in Vientiane on August 28 with the Department of Livestock and Fisheries, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry agreeing to cooperate with the Worldwide Fund for Nature. A memorandum of understanding was signed by the DLF’s Deputy ...
Japan readies 100bn yen in lending for Myanmar
Japan plans to extend about $994 million in low-interest lending to Myanmar for such projects as railways and water treatment plants, the latest step in Tokyo’s push to bolster ties with the Southeast Asian country. This would mark Japan’s first development financing initiative for Myanmar since ...
Japan contributes to mechanised UXO clearance in XiengKhuang
According to the Japanese Embassy in Vientiane on August 18 the Japan government has provided grant assistance worth over US$570,662 for Mechanical Cluster Submunition Clearance in Xieng Khuang province. This project will accelerate UXO clearance with a Cluster Submunition Clearance Machine which cuts bush around a site ...
US supports HIV/AIDS response in Vietnam
The US Agency for International Development has awarded a five-year grant to the Center for Promotion of Quality of Life in Vietnam to strengthen community-led approaches to HIV prevention, care and treatment.The USAID Enhanced Community HIV Link – Southern project, implemented in Ho Chi Minh City, ...
Why 'partnerships for sustainable development' counts as an essential sustainable development goal
Of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, the 17th is the odd one out. As “Partnerships for the Goals”, it is a goal that helps you get to the other 16 goals. For most businesses committed to sustainable development, however, this 17th goal may be the ...
The changing face of Japan-ASEAN aid
Japan’s foreign aid toolkit has been expanding since Prime Minister Shinzo Abe took office in December 2012, as he seeks to shore up Japan’s influence in South-east Asia in the face of muscle-flexing by China. Japan announced on August 12 that it would give two new large ...
EU asks gov’t to cancel Mondulkiri border crossing plan
The EU has called on the government to kill plans for a controversial border checkpoint in the Mondulkiri Protected Forest that has drawn the ire of conservationists since it was first mooted two years ago. At a meeting with Interior Minister Sar Kheng on August 9, ...
More aid earmarked for Myanmar
Australia has pledged an extra $12 million in humanitarian assistance to Myanmar to help address the legacy of civil war and natural disasters. Foreign Minister Julie Bishop made the announcement after meeting with her counterpart and democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi.Keep reading ...
Cambodia, Vietnam to build market on border
The Vietnamese government on 27 July agreed in principle to provide a grant of $2 million to Cambodia to build a model market aimed at boosting cross-border trade between the two countries, officials at Cambodia’s Ministry of Commerce said. The market will be constructed on 1.5 ...
Laos benefits from regional cooperation
Laos is benefiting from regional projects supported by the Republic of Korea and India through Mekong-ROK and Mekong-Ganga cooperation. The Sixth Mekong-ROK Foreign Ministers’ Meeting hosted by Laos in Vientiane on Sunday welcomed the endorsement of seven projects under the Mekong-ROK Cooperation Fund, to which the ...