News
Four international airports need to be built in Laos
Laos will need to build four new international airports as the existing four of Wattay, Luang Prabang, Savan and Pakse will be unable to accommodate growing air transport in the coming decades, a minister told the cabinet. Minister of Public Works and Transport Dr Bounchanh Sinthavong ...
Lao parents push children to study medicine
Many students at Laos’ University of Health Sciences are there because that’s what their parents want and are taking courses reluctantly because they have no personal interest in the subject. This is the finding of a survey carried out by Associate Professor Dr Mayfong Mayxay of the ...
Government agrees to repair Vientiane's poor roads
The government has allocated a large amount of money from its budget to repair and repave deteriorating roads throughout the city. Vientiane Public Works and Transport Department are now pressing ahead with repairs to around 20 main roads across the capital after the government released over ...
Ceasefire to be signed by some armed groups in October, others abstain
A long-awaited ceasefire agreement between the government and ethnic armed groups will be signed on 15 October, negotiators said, though the pact will not be the “inclusive” agreement many ethnic groups had hoped for. Seven ethnic armed groups have committed to signing the pact while other ...
World Bank trims Asia forecast but says no China hard landing
The World Bank on 5 October cut its growth forecasts for developing economies in East Asia and the Pacific but allayed fears of a hard landing for China’s slowing economy. The bank also said it expects any increase in US interest rates to have an orderly impact ...
Thai junta picks panel to write constitution after draft rejected
Thailand’s military government, which took power in May last year, appointed a committee to draft the country’s 20th constitution on 5 October after a previous draft was rejected, delaying promised elections until at least 2017. The junta-appointed legislature dismissed the military-backed constitution last month after it was ...
Thailand to tap rice stockpile to maintain export levels
Rice exports from Thailand may be steady next year as the world’s biggest shipper taps state inventories to offset a possible decline in production amid dry weather. Keep reading ...
Japan's Sapporo buys out its Vietnamese beer venture: report
State-owned tobacco company Vinataba has sold out its 29 percent stake in Sapporo Vietnam to Japanese parent Sapporo Holdings, news website VnExpress reported on 4 October. Keep reading ...
Vietnam fruits lose ground to Thai imports even as ASEAN threat looms
Vietnamese fruit sellers are selling more Thai vegetables, making it harder for local vegetable growers to compete. Thailand is now the largest exporter of vegetables and fruits to Vietnam after surpassing China early last year. Be, who has a fruit shop on Nguyen Thai Hoc Street, Can Tho, ...
Vietnamese teens busted in Cambodia with endangered animals
Two Vietnamese teenagers were arrested in Kandal province on 2 October after being found illegally transporting 44 endangered tortoises, which they reportedly intended to smuggle into Vietnam for sale. Keep reading ...
