Aid and development
Irrigation agricultural technology project boosts farmers' knowledge
Farmers have improved their methods of irrigation management and technique of rice products after the completion of a joint Japanese and Lao basic irrigation agricultural technology dissemination project recently. The project’s assessment meeting was held in Vientiane last week and was attended by the Irrigation ...
Proposal for training to enhance factory skills
Cambodia has appealed to Germany – a country renowned for its skilled technicians and engineers – to provide vocational training to support the Kingdom’s growing industrial sector, a Commerce Ministry official said on 24 June. In a meeting earlier this week, Minister of Commerce Pan Sorasak ...
Cambodia’s solar sector set for bright future
The Kingdom’s ability to produce renewable energy boosted with $30m funding from Climate Investments Funds. With almost half the population of Cambodia without access to electricity, the announcement today of $30m in funding for renewable energy projects should come as welcome news. The $8.1-billion Climate Investments Funds, ...
No progress on new Vientiane-Champassak highway
One year has passed but the new Vientiane-Champassak highway survey and design has not progressed following a Chinese company signing an agreement with the Ministry of Public Works and Transport. “We are now writing a letter to the company informing them that if they cannot perform ...
Businesses prefer Vietnam-EU FTA over TPP
When comparing Vietnam’s commitments within the Vietnam-EU free trade agreement and the Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement, businesses see bigger benefits in EVFTA, especially in government procurement. Tran Quoc Khanh, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade, said it was not the initial intention of Vietnam to apply ...
PM challenges EU to follow through on threat to cut aid
Prime Minister Hun Sen on 13 June blithely brushed aside a recent threat from the European Parliament to cut hundreds of millions of dollars in aid to Cambodia over human rights abuses, challenging the body to follow through.“I am never afraid of China because Cambodia has ...
EU to start ASEAN aviation talks
The European Commission is planning to start negotiations with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations on an aviation agreement soon, having received a mandate from EU transport ministers earlier this week. The EU is hoping to create new airline routes and new business opportunities for European ...
EC, NLA unnerved by referendum-law challenge
The chiefs of the Election Commission and the National Legislative Assembly showed confidence on 9 June the draft charter referendum remained on course despite the latest decision by the Constitutional Court. The controversial words are “violent, aggressive, rude,” which the petitioners find vague and subjective and open ...
Amid turmoil, EU calls for review of aid to Cambodia
The European Parliament on Thursday passed a resolution accusing the Cambodian government of laying politically motivated charges against the opposition and calling for aid cuts if its respect for human rights fails to improve—a loud echo of a resolution it passed just six months ago. “Today, ...
IMF urges Thailand rate cuts that central bank says not needed
The International Monetary Fund called on policy makers in Thailand to cut interest rates in the face of a sluggish economy and low inflation, an approach that the central bank says isn’t necessary. Thailand needs expansionary fiscal and monetary policies to help spur an economy that’s ...