News
Dam disaster on the way
It is now early on in the rainy season and the water volume on the Mekong River should have been high. But water levels on certain stretches of the international river, which runs from China through Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam, have reached their ...
The Lao National Assembly refocuses attention on the issue of corruption
On June 14, members of the Lao National Assembly stood up, one after another, and recounted cases of bribery, embezzlement and corruption within the country’s courts and political system. Members described how courts routinely reversed decisions, revisiting judgements after receiving letters in favour of the accused, even after ...
Govt speeding up drought relief work
The Royal Irrigation Department (RID) is speeding up efforts to mitigate the impacts of the looming drought after water levels in several major reservoirs fell below the levels of last year. Eighteen major reservoirs are holding less than 30% of their storage capacity including Pasak Jolasid ...
Vietnam improves its position on Sustainable Development Goals
Vietnam is up three ranks on the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Index this year, moving ahead on several fronts. The country is ranked 54th among 162 countries and territories on the SDG Index, which tracks countries’ performances on achieving the 17 SDGs set by the United ...
Phan Anh
Poisonous e-waste dump cleared, leaving stench of corruption
Piles of industrial and electronic waste dumped in protected forest in the eastern province of Sa Kaew were cleared on Wednesday, making way for the Pollution Control Department to soon move in to check whether toxic residues would endanger the health of local residents. Grateful the ...
Xayaboury dam on track to start commercial operation at year’s end
The Xayaboury hydropower plant yesterday began a trial operation of its fifth generator, setting the first run-of-river dam in the lower Mekong basin on track to begin commercial operation at the end of this year. A senior official at the Xayaboury Energy and Mines Department said ...
Ekaphone Phouthonesy
Programme helps empower ethnic minority women via 4.0 technology
A conference was held in the northern province of Bac Kan on July 17 to connect ethnic minority women with partners under a programme supporting them to develop economic activities via Industry 4.0 technology. The programme, supported by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), will enable ...
EU-funded project tackles wildlife trafficking
The European Union has provided 8 million euros to support a new project in seven countries including Laos, in a move to strengthen their governments’ actions to combat wildlife trafficking and forest crime. In Laos, the national launch event of EU action, titled Partners against Wildlife ...
Somsack Pongkhao
As local residents question Belt and Road impacts, China and Myanmar remain silent
Chinese investment in projects for the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is changing the homes, economies, and environments of people across Myanmar, often in conflict zones. In some cases, those affected by the projects are calling for the government to stop or alter Chinese-backed projects ...
Skylar Lindsay
China must be sincere on Mekong
Last week, the Bangkok Post published remarks by Yang Yang, a spokesperson for the Chinese embassy in Thailand, explaining how China and others are promoting water resources cooperation in the Mekong “for the benefit of the people in the region”. I, and members of the Thai ...
