News

As Vietnam is poised to take over the rotational chair of Asean in January 2020, its second foremost foreign policy priority after the South China Sea is reportedly the Mekong River region. While the South China Sea, where more than one third of global shipping ...

Farmers along the Mekong have been told to expect a worse drought than the brutal water shortages that gripped the region before this year’s rains arrived.  Severe or extreme drought is forecast to affect Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam before the next wet season, threatening agricultural production. The Mekong ...

Thailand slipped one position to 43rd out of 63 economies in the World Talent Ranking 2019, while its regional peers Singapore, Indonesia and the Philippines advanced, according to a report conducted by the IMD World Competitiveness Centre (WCC). The sixth edition of the ranking takes into ...

The rise of fake news is an existential moment for journalism, and there needs to be a combined global effort to combat it. Such a move is crucial, especially with the rise of tech platforms which have accelerated the spread of falsehoods online, media leaders said ...

As multilateral trade negotiations have become unworkable, regional and bilateral alternatives are on the rise. In Thailand’s neighbourhood, the most consequential of these trade vehicles is the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). As it missed the boat on the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), ...

ASEAN has embarked on exploring how to implement the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda in the region. It has recently organised “an inaugural inter-sectoral dialogue on WPS issues in the ASEAN region” to support Member States implement the Joint Statement on WPS adopted at ...

International representatives from the government and private sectors across Southeast Asia vowed to co-operate to address the resource constraints through the circular economy with a focus on “resource maximisation, waste separation and proper disposal” in the manufacturing and consumption cycle at a symposium in Bangkok ...

In 2015, ASEAN and China signed an upgraded protocol to improve the original Framework Agreement for the ASEAN–China Free Trade Area (ACFTA). The upgraded protocol entered into force in July 2016 and implementation will start from August 2019. Since ACFTA was launched, China’s share of ASEAN ...

Emerging technology and relentless changes in labour markets have forced young people in Southeast Asia to constantly upgrade their skills, research released yesterday by the World Economic Forum (WEF) and Singaporean-based internet company Sea has revealed. The survey of some 56,000 respondents aged from 15 to 36 from ...

Southeast Asian foreign ministers opened their annual meeting in Bangkok, Thailand, yesterday to discuss and further strengthen Asean community building and enhance regional cooperation. Lao Minister of Foreign Affairs Mr Saleumxay Kommasith attended the 52nd Asean Foreign Ministers’ Meeting and Related Meetings hosted by Thailand. Those present ...