Disasters and emergency response
Disasters
ADB supports Thailand green bonds for Covid-19 recovery
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is assisting the government of Thailand in designing, issuing and monitoring innovative capital market initiatives as part of the country’s recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic in a manner aligned with the 2015 Paris Agreement and the UN Sustainable Development Goals. ADB’s ...
Chito Santiago
Mekong Delta should safeguard fruit orchards from saltwater in rivers: experts
The Mekong Delta region should take proactive measures to protect fruit orchards in the 2020 – 21 dry season as severe saltwater intrusion in rivers is forecast in the coming months, experts have said. The measures should include zoning areas for each type of fruit, securing irrigation water and providing extra care ...
Storm causes disruption in the south
Storm Noul hit southern Laos on Friday after passing through Vietnam, bringing heavy rain and flooding to many areas. In Xekong province, the main road in Ta-oy district was flooded on Friday, causing problems for traffic. A local official said “Livestock was moved to higher ground ...
Times Reporters
In the Shadow of Riches, Fishers Face Eviction, Desperately Low Waters
Yan Khouvry was out fishing till 7 a.m. on Tuesday morning. He had set out late morning on Monday and plied the waters near Koh Dach all day and night. He returned with just two fish. Later on Tuesday morning, around 10 a.m., he was preparing ...
Mech Dara and Michael Dickison
Salinity intrusion threatens quarter of Mekong Delta orchards
The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has warned that nearly a quarter of Mekong Delta orchard area could suffer from saltwater intrusion. The ministry stated Thursday at a conference around 80,550 ha or 23.2 percent of Mekong Delta orchards for the 2020-2021 harvest season would ...
Dang Khoa
Tonle Sap Bottleneck comparison - September 2019 vs 2020
Prior to 2020, the 2019 wet season was one of the driest on record. The annual reversal of the Tonle Sap in Cambodia was severely delayed in 2019 but low rainfall plus upstream dam regulation (mostly from China’s 11 mainstream Mekong dams) have totally erased ...
Brian Eyler
Myanmar’s Second Wave of Coronavirus Takes Toll on Under-60 Population
A resurgence of coronavirus infections in Myanmar has been lethal for younger people in the Southeast Asian country, with 40 percent of those under the age of 60 who have tested positive dying from the highly contagious respiratory illness, a government health official said Thursday. On ...
Nay Myo Htun and Kan Thar for RFA’s Myanmar Service. Translated by Ye Kaung Myint Maung. Written in English by Roseanne Gerin.
Last Group of Families Displaced by Laos’ Nam Theun 1 Dam Accept Compensation
More than a hundred families in central Laos’ Bolikhamxay province who were displaced by the Nam Theun 1 dam have decided to accept compensation, putting an end to a standoff that lasted 17 months, sources in Laos told RFA. Disputes over compensation by displaced villagers have ...
RFA’s Lao Service. Translated by Max Avary. Written in English by Eugene Whong.
Covid and the climate crisis in SE Asia
‘A global reset”, “a sick planet”, “health security” are huge, heavy phrases that have been swirling in the global psyche for most of this Covid-19-marked year. They speak of the “must-do-something” type of issues that weigh on the minds of people everywhere, including in Southeast ...
JOHANNA SON
Vietnam receives support for smart sensors to combat flooding
The Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) awarded a $400,000 grant to Griffith University researchers to develop a network of energy-efficient smart sensors that will help Vietnam combat flooding. The project aims to create a web of micro-sensors spread throughout Ho Chi Minh (HCM) City to ...
Samaya Dharmaraj