News
Mekong dams destroy Tonle Sap Lake
As the Tonle Sap floodplain empties into the Mekong this spring, the Cambodians who rely on these waters face bleak prospects, with fish catches reportedly 10 to 20% of previous years. Blame for the precipitous decline in the ecology has been put on the many hydropower projects ...
Tyler Roney
Vestas delivering Vietnam’s tallest turbines in Mekong Delta wind project
Danish wind turbine manufacturer Vestas is elevating its status in Vietnam’s energy market. The company has secured an order for 67 MW of wind capacity in two projects. Vestas says the turbines ordered will be the tallest in the country with hub heights of about 162 meters (close ...
Rod Walton
Five million workers, 84.8% of companies affected by COVID-19 pandemic in Vietnam: GSO
The General Statistics Office (GSO) of Vietnam said on Friday an estimated five million workers and nearly 85 percent of companies in the country were negatively affected by the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic in the first quarter of 2020. Turbulence was observed in the Vietnamese labor market in Q1 2020 and ...
Covid-19 Curfew Arrests of Thailand’s Homeless
How can people “stay at home” if they are homeless? Police arrested Tui, a homeless man in the city of Chiang Mai, on April 5 for violating the 10 p.m. to 4 a.m. curfew the Thai government imposed as an emergency measure to contain the Covid-19 pandemic. After police ...
Sunai Phasuk
92nd joint patrol on Mekong River a big success
The 92nd Mekong River joint patrol by China, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand concluded on Saturday morning (April 25) as three Chinese law enforcement boats returned to Guanlei Port in the southwest Province of Yunnan. A total of 109 law enforcement officers from the four countries participated ...
China's dams exacerbated extreme drought in lower Mekong: Study
Southeast Asian countries would have likely experienced a much less severe drought last year if it were not for China’s dams, a new study says, prompting a pushback from the intergovernmental Mekong River Commission (MRC). The 4,000-km (2,485-mile) Mekong is one of the world’s longest rivers – ...
Leonie Kijewski
Ministry setting up cash for 2m disabled
The Finance Ministry is seeking a lifeline for the 2 million disabled and underprivileged people who are adversely affected by the coronavirus outbreak, says finance permanent secretary Prasong Poontaneat. The ministry is working out the details with the Social Development and Human Security Ministry, which has ...
WICHIT CHANTANUSORNSIRI
Key to controlling wildfires lies with communities
While attention is focused on the coronavirus pandemic, we must also be alert to another fast-spreading hazard claiming lives — wildfires. Several people died this year fighting fires in northern Thailand. Now, hundreds of fires are burning there, in Laos and Myanmar. We expect more fires ...
DAVID GANZ
China’s post-COVID-19 woes to flow through the Mekong
As China shows signs of recovery from the COVID-19 outbreak, speculations abound about what a post-COVID-19 future will look like. Amid the cacophony of voices, consensus is gathering that global power balances will shift. What this shift might entail is fiercely debated. Some see China ...
Heidi Dahles, Griffith University
At-cost power bills get ministry nod
The Energy Ministry approved a plan on Thursday to charge mid-sized and large businesses for electricity at cost instead of mandatory minimum pricing from April to June, another relief measure to help shuttered companies with their power bills. The decision came after calls from the Federation ...
YUTHANA PRAIWAN