Social development
Public health
Mekong states sign on to UN policy on drugs
With the Kingdom in the middle of a controversial “war on drugs”, six Mekong countries agreed on May 10 to adopt a regional drug policy that puts health care first, and mandates police and judicial cooperation. Ministers and delegates from Cambodia, China, Laos, Vietnam, Myanmar and ...
Authorities warn of foot and mouth disease outbreak
Svay Rieng provincial agriculture authorities urged residents to take extra precautions with their cattle to prevent the spread of foot and mouth disease, which was detected in several communes there. Provincial department of agriculture director Thach Ratana said on May 9 that on Thursday, more than ...
Non-infectious diseases kill 400,000 Vietnamese per year
Infectious diseases kill about 300 people per year, whereas non-infectious infectious diseases kill about 400,000 ones, said Deputy Minister of Health Nguyễn Thanh Long. He was speaking during a conference to discuss the prevention and control of non-infectious diseases held in HCM City on May ...
Dengue cases plunge
Only 510 cases of dengue fever were reported in the first three months of this year, a drop of 62 percent compared with the same period last year. A National Centre for Parasitology, Entomology and Malaria Control report said the incidence was 3.1 out of 100,000 ...
Immunization clinics available in 98 hospitals
Hospital-based immunization clinics have been opened in 98 hospitals, which have 100 beds or more throughout the regions and states starting in the month of May. Dr Myint Htwe, Union Minister for the Ministry of Health and Sports said hospital-based immunization program is one of ...
China steps in to help control locust plague
The locust invasion in the north has reached plague proportions and despite a chemical spraying campaign their numbers are continuing to grow in Huaphan, Luang Prabang, Oudomxay, Phongsaly and Xieng Khuang provinces. In an attempt to stop the pests destroying all crops in their path, ...
Govt to encourage wider use of contraception
In a bid to lower maternal and child morbidity and mortality, Laos will aim to reduce the unmet need for contraception to 13 percent and increase the contraceptive prevalence rate using at least one method from 42 to 65 percent by 2020. The nation’s unmet ...
Bun Rany urges midwives to upskill
Cambodia’s first lady has called on all midwives to prioritise professional development and improve their skills, ahead of the International Day of the Midwife tomorrow. Prime Minister Hun Sen’s wife Bun Rany, who is also president of the Cambodian Red Cross, sent a letter calling ...
Huaphan suffers return of locust plague
Almost 200 hectares of bamboo in 40 villages of eight districts in Huaphan province are under attack by the yellow-spined bamboo locust, with the area being sprayed with insecticide to prevent the locusts spreading to croplands. Head of the province’s agriculture sector, Mr Siviengsab Phengphomma, ...
Users’ services feeling USAID cut
Taing Phoeuk, the Khmer-American director of Korsang, glumly brushed the ash from his cigarette on a restaurant balcony overlooking Sihanouk Boulevard. “It’s going to kill us,” he said, contemplating the prospect of his organisation’s demise as its USAID funding evaporates. Founded in 2004 by American ...