News
Trade union law passes
The National Assembly of Cambodia on 4 April passed a contentious trade union law, just hours after a group of pro-union demonstrators and Daun Penh district security guards clashed violently outside.“They did not explain clearly what their intentions [were to retain articles in the law],” ...
Japanese ODA approved for transport, environment plans
The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has signed agreements with Viet Nam to provide Official Development Assistance loans worth a total of 95.17 billion yen (US$847.39 million) to develop four projects. The ODA loans are expected to enhance the country’s competitiveness and promote environmental improvements. Keep reading ...
Daw Suu to get new powers under draft law
A draft law that would create a key pivotal post in government specifically designed for Daw Aung San Suu Kyi in Myanmar is to be debated in the upper house on 1 April, although a senior MP denied that she would in effect become prime ...
Drought killing next year's sugar crop
The El Nino weather phenomenon has played havoc with crops across Southeast Asia and beyond. Thailand, the world’s second-largest sugar exporter, will ship 20% less of the sweetener to international markets this year than last, and farmers fear the damage already inflicted on young cane ...
Wissanu confirms election to take place in 2017
The first general election in two years will definitely take place next year regardless of the referendum’s outcome although it may not be in July as planned earlier, according to Thailand’s Deputy Prime Minister Wissanu Krea-ngam. Keep reading ...
Cardamom brings great changes for Phongsaly farmers
Many local farmers in Laos’s Phongsaly province are shifting to plant cardamom, after earning lucrative income from growing this crop and selling it to Chinese traders. Some families earned as much as 40 million kip per year from growing cardamom, which enabled them to send their ...
Locals join hands to fight against saline intrusion
In their fight against drought and saline intrusion, farmers in Tiểu Cần District of the southern Trà Vinh Province have contributed their own money to build canals and ditches. Each household in the Trung Tiến Hamlet of Tân Hùng Commune contributes about VNĐ70,000 (US$3) per every ...
Vietnam plans to replace rice with more profitable crops
Vietnam plans to gradually reduce rice production and switch to other more profitable crops, a plan that experts say makes sense since the country grows so much paddy and is a massive exporter of the unprofitable crop. The National Assembly’s Economic Committee recently agreed with the ...
Khammuan sets three-month deadline for illegal foreign workers
Khammuan provincial authorities has given three months for illegal foreign workers who failed to meet the necessary conditions to apply to work legally in Laos to clear up all their things and leave the country, a senior provincial official has said. The decision was part of ...
Shan community groups denounce European-backed dam projects
Ethnic Shan communities in northern Shan State have called for an end to four planned hydropower dams on the Namtu River, an Irrawaddy tributary, citing irreparable damage to the environment. More than 100 people gathered in Hsipaw Township to hold a prayer service on the bank ...
