Social development
Kachin residents forced to forage for food to survive
Skyrocketing transport costs and road blockages due to conflict have forced a number of villagers in northern Kachin State’s Hsawlaw township to begin foraging for food in order to survive, according to Kachin MPs. “If we buy a bag of rice from Chipwe or Myitkyina, ...
Study maps 187 land conflicts as palm oil expands in Kalimantan
Palm oil production in Indonesia often comes at the expense of traditionally managed lands as well as the livelihoods of indigenous communities, causing widespread conflict in the archipelago country. With oil palm cultivation set to double in Indonesia over the next 10 years, methods for understanding ...
ASEAN FMs pledge support on Rakhine
An unprecedented meeting of ASEAN foreign ministers called to discuss the ongoing military campaign in Rakhine State ended on December 19 with Myanmar expressing its appreciation for the other member states’ understanding. This was the first such meeting Myanmar has initiated on the subject, having previously ...
Reform measures improve governance
The implementation of governance and public administration reform has improved various ministerial sectors in the country. This conclusion was reached at a meeting held in Vientiane on December 19 to review the National Governance and Public Administration Reform Programme. Strengthening Capacity for Service Delivery for Local ...
1,000 elderly care centres to be set up
The Health Service Support Department plans to set up more than 1,000 elderly care centres as part of preparations for the nation’s ageing society. Department spokesman Pattarapon Jungsomjatepaisal said on December 18 the agency is working on the project to establish the centres across the country. ...
Malaysia calls for ASEAN to coordinate aid for Myanmar's Rohingya
Malaysia said on December 19 the plight of Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar was a regional concern and called for the Association of South East Asian Nations to coordinate humanitarian aid and investigate alleged atrocities committed against them. Malaysian Foreign Minister Anifah Aman was speaking at a ...
Vietnamese read one book a year: insider
Even though Vietnam’s publishing industry continues to grow, outperforming its digital counterpart, the national reading rate remains low, education insiders said at a seminar. In its last meeting of the year on December 18, The Sofa, a monthly book-themed discussion group held on Ho Chi ...
Deputy PM pushes for speedy mother and child health improvements
Deputy Prime Minister has called on the Ministry of Health to speed up improvements to health services for mothers and their children especially at district and community levels. Dr Sonexay Siphandone made the call in his address at a meeting held last week to review ...
United Nations: one third of Cambodian women suffer abuse
More than 30 percent of Cambodian women have experienced some form of domestic violence at the hands of their partner at some point in their lives, a report released on December 15 by the Ministry of Women’s Affairs and the United Nations Population Fund revealed. According ...
Facing the challenges of ensuring digital rights
Digital rights are human rights, participants in a nationwide forum were told this week. The Myanmar Digital Rights Forum discussed the issues raised by the increasing access, in recent years, of large numbers of Myanmar citizens to the internet, social media and mobile phones. The question ...
