News
Vietnam's foreign investment surges to over $10 billion in Jan-May

Vietnam has been promised US$10.15 billion of foreign direct investment in the first five months this year, up a staggering 136 percent from a year ago, according to new data. A statement from the Ministry of Investment and Planning said Vietnam licensed 907 new foreign projects ...
Drought relief campaign over: PM

The government’s emergency campaign to distribute water to some 2.5 million people affected by drought is over, Cambodia’s Prime Minister Hun Sen declared on 25 May, though for development partners and humanitarian groups, drought relief efforts continue. Humanitarian and disaster reduction manager for Save the Children ...
Luang Prabang sees unexpected dip in tourism growth
Director of the Luang Prabang provincial Department of Information, Culture and Tourism, Mr Onechan Souvannalit, said on 25 May that much more needs to be done in terms of marketing and creating confidence among international tourists, to encourage them to visit the World Heritage town. Tourists mainly ...
Govt demarcates new mandates for ministries, adopts revenue collection measures

According to the new assignments at the government’s monthly meeting for May in Vientiane from May 24-25, the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry takes sole management for all kinds of forest. The Ministry of Energy and Mines takes sole management mandate for all mining. Land management ...
New firm seeks to enter gold trading
Golden FX Link (Cambodia) has joined in the running to become a legally licensed firm to trade derivatives. With a registered capital of $5 million, Lawrence Kook, Director of Golden FX Link, said that the company received a license in principle from the Securities and ...
The fight for resources in Myanmar’s deep south

Tanintharyi Region, the southern tip of Myanmar, abounds with natural resources and the problems associated with them. Residents in the isolated region face over-mining by foreign companies, the proposed development of a deep-sea port, an oil refinery and a special economic zone, mechanised farming of rubber ...
Thilawa SEZ phase two nears completion

The second phase of a 2400-hectare special economic zone to the south of Yangon will be finished in July, with residential and commercial developments to follow, an official has said. Once the second phase of Zone A is finished in July, a company called Thilawa Property ...
Sand dredging licences secretly soaring

Despite the government’s vow to be more transparent with regulations and the issuing of sand-dredging licences, Cambodia’s Ministry of Mines and Energy has granted nearly 70 new such licences without holding public auctions or requiring companies to disclose environmental impact assessments results to the public, according ...
Government urged to update environmental monitoring services

The operation mode of the environmental monitoring institutions needs an overhaul as the country is facing serious environmental problems as a result of an unsustainable development model. The Thi Vai River in Vietnam is contaminated by discharged waste water from Vedan’s factories. And many more incidents ...
Mekong region could rely on 100% clean energy by 2050: WWF

Thailand and countries in the Mekong region should be able to rely 100 per cent on renewable energy by 2050 and escape the severe impacts of climate change, a World Wildlife Fund study revealed. The WWF held a press conference in Bangkok on 24 May to ...