Social development
Asia: Malaria in the Greater Mekong subregion
According to 2nd Quarter 2021 data from the World Health Organization (WHO) Mekong Malaria Elimination Program published October 1, the Greater Mekong subregion (GMS) reported 12,454 malaria cases from April to June 2021. The data shows Plasmodium falciparum and mixed cases were down 69 percent from the same ...
NEWS DESK
UN Says Poverty in Myanmar at Worst Level in 20 Years Following Coup
The UN’s top humanitarian official in Myanmar said on Thursday the country’s people are living in “a severe crisis,” with a level of poverty not seen for at least 20 years. In a virtual briefing for UN correspondents, Andrew Kirkwood said the number of people in ...
THE IRRAWADDY
Info access draft law all set for final review
Minister of Information Khieu Kanharith said access to knowledge is indispensable in a democratic society and expressed hope that people will soon be able to have more confidence when choosing their leaders once the new draft law on information access is passed. “Universal access to information ...
Ry Sochan
Dramatic Drop Evident in Internet Rights for Myanmar, Belarus
Belarus and Myanmar registered a significant decline in global internet freedom ratings following political turmoil in which authorities in the two countries arrested journalists and blocked access to the internet. In its annual Freedom on the Net report, the global nonprofit Freedom House found digital rights had declined globally for ...
VOA News
Thai students suffer inequality and poor mental health as pandemic lingers
At a protest earlier this month, a large banner was unfurled on the side of an overpass that read, “1.8 million children are about to fall out of the school system due to online instruction that doesn’t give a shit about them.” A young girl ...
MARK S. COGAN
Myanmar Junta Arrests Two More Journalists
Two more Myanmar journalists have been arrested by junta forces, raising the number of journalists being held by the military regime to 53 as of September 16, according to Reporters Without Borders (RSF). Since the military’s February 1 coup, Myanmar has become the world’s second-biggest jailer ...
THE IRRAWADDY
Laos and China innovate poverty reduction cooperation along Mekong River
Sept. 11 (Xinhua): Along the Mekong River which winds through the mountains in northern and central Laos, the poverty alleviation projects with China aid are solidly advanced there with innovation made. In the steepy mountains and deep valleys of the Mekong River Basin, infrastructure is weak. ...
Myanmar Citizens Voice Support For Uprising Against Junta Despite Risks
Many people in Myanmar support the National Unity Government’s (NUG) declaration of war against the military junta despite the threat of added instability and inflation, sources in the country said Wednesday, a day after the shadow government leadership announced the move. The call to arms and ...
Reported by RFA’s Myanmar Service. Translated by Khin Maung Nyane. Written in English by Joshua Lipes.
How Lao PDR Can Connect Health, Environment, and Economic Recovery
To mark the International Day of Clean Air for blue skies, the World Bank is publishing a Country Environmental Analysis for the Lao PDR, analyzing how the country can use its commitment to greener growth to stimulate economic recovery from the current slowdown, and to improve ...
Newsroom
Vietnamese Facebook User Fined for ‘Fake News’ as Criticism Grows of Government’s Handling of Pandemic
Police in Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh City have fined a local Facebook user for saying that local government has neglected city residents and let them go hungry amid lockdowns aimed at controlling the spread of COVID-19, sources said. Nguyen Thuy Duong was fined VND 5 million ...
RFA’s Vietnamese Service. Translated by Anna Vu. Written in English by Richard Finney