National government

An official says the Philippines and Vietnam plan to sign an accord next week to elevate their relationship to a strategic level, allowing them to deepen economic ties and maritime cooperation. Keep reading ...

To cheers and boos from the watching public, electoral officials in a Mandalay Region township are counting votes one-by-one in public. The unusual counting method was adopted to allay fears that unqualified voters had been trucked in to rig the result. More than 300 people gathered ...

First and unofficial results reported late on 8 November from some of the 40,000 polling stations across Myanmar led to celebrations in Yangon by supporters of the National League for Democracy, although the outcome may remain in doubt for days to come. Keep reading ...

Trade and security links will be high on the agenda when New Zealand Prime Minister John Key undertakes a three-nation tour of Southeast Asia next week. Key said Monday he would lead a trade delegation to Vietnam from 14 to 17 November and meet with Prime ...

ASEAN leaders will flock to the ASEAN Summit this month to declare their commitment to the ASEAN Economic Community and sketch out their 10-year strategies to increase the region’s competitiveness and draw more investment. Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha will lead the Thai delegation to the 14th ASEAN Summit, which will ...

Laos officially launched the logo, theme and website for its ASEAN Chairmanship 2016 on 6 November as part of the country’s preparations for the event. The ASEAN 2016 theme is “Turning vision into reality for a dynamic ASEAN community” and the website is www.asean2016.gov.la. Keep reading ...

The social security system so far covers only 30.22 percent of the population, which is far behind the target of 50 percent set for the 2014-2015 fiscal year, which ended last month. Director General of the Department of Social Security under the Ministry of Labour and ...

Som Kimsour, the chairwoman of Cambodia’s National Audit Authority, was appointed to chair the ASEAN Supreme Audit Institutions, a collaborative body of public sector auditors, during a summit on 5 November in Phnom Penh, according to state media outlet AKP. Keep reading ...

Deputy Minister of Finance Do Hoang Anh Tuan has instructed tax offices in Ho Chi Minh City to review businesses’ applications for tax refunds and resolve possible problems that have been delaying payments.   He issued the order at a meeting on 5 November after many businesses complained ...

Despite some concerns as voters waited expectantly in long queues at polling stations across the country, voting on 8 November passed without major incident. Nyan Win, a National League for Democracy party spokesperson, told The Irrawaddy a few minutes before the close of voting that his party ...