Social development
Global warming to decrease productivity in Thailand - report
Rising temperatures and humidity due to climate change are likely to increase the number of days with unsafe “heat stress,” putting Thailand at risk of a significant drop in productivity, a research firm said on 28 October. Thailand – with three of the 50 highest-risk cities ...
The Vietnam War's 'time bomb' legacy for Laos
The confrontation is immediate — a hundred cluster bombs suspended from the ceiling on fishing wire. This is the display that greets visitors to the Cooperative Orthotic and Prosthetic Enterprise (COPE) centre in Vientiane. Between 1964 and 1973, more than 580,000 US bombing missions made the once-tranquil ...
Lao Government renews award policy for veterans
The Lao government has renewed a policy that rewards veterans who excelled in the revolutionary fight for national liberation, with targeted groups to be awarded under the new system. Prime Minister Thongsing Thammavong last month inked the eight-page governmental decree to replace the previous one promulgated ...
Letpadan students set to expand hunger strikes
Legal proceedings at Tharyarwady District Court against students arrested last March have been at a standstill for the past several weeks, but that did not stop a crowd from appearing there on 27 October. Most had come to show their support for Ko Aung Hmine San, ...
Ratanakkiri minorities say land stolen
Ethnic minorities in Ratanakkiri province have accused local authorities of selling community forest land to a provincial court official and threatening to put them in jail, according to a complaint filed on 27 October. The complaint was filed to the provincial office of rights group Adhoc ...
UK backs STEM push in Cambodia
Young Cambodians will be urged to consider a career in the fields of science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM), through a joint initiative launched on 27 October by the Ministry of Education, the British Embassy and the international employment and training organisation IDP Education. Keep reading ...
School curriculum overhaul under way in Myanmar
For the first time in 20 years, education specialists are overhauling the curriculum used in Myanmar’s state schools. The process, which began in 2014, will be completed in stages over the coming years. U Myo Thein Gyi, director general of the Department of Myanmar Education Research Bureau, said ...
Unclean air: Study finds pollution at dangerous level in Ho Chi Minh City's new urban areas
A new study from Ho Chi Minh City’s environment department has found an increase in dust and toxic gas in many urban areas, warning that motorbike riders can be exposed to major health risks. According to local media, the environment observation and analysis center measured the ...
Ramp plan for public areas gets push from Cambodian government
In efforts to improve conditions for its disabled citizens, the government on 26 October announced that it plans to order the installation of ramps and access signs at all public places. Speaking at the launch of the government’s disability policy in Phnom Penh, Em Chan Makara, secretariat ...
First bird flu outbreak this year confirmed in Laos
The first avian flu outbreak this year in Laos was reported in ducks and chickens in a farm located in Xayabury. Keep reading ...