Infrastructure
World Bank approves loan to poverty reduction fund
On 13 July, the Ministry of Finance signed a US$30 million agreement with the World Bank aimed at continuing to finance Laos’ Poverty Reduction Fund, improving livelihoods and upgrading infrastructure for residents of 150 rural villages in over 40 districts of 10 target provinces. The funding will ...
Compensation for mining company’s ‘poisoning’ not enough: plaintiffs
People in Tak province say nothing has been done about removing cadmium contamination from their water source, while the Appeals Court on 12 July upheld the Civil Court’s earlier ruling against zinc-mining companies on the leakage of toxins into the Mae Tao River Basin. The Southern ...
IP Dept urges copyright owners to spare SMEs
The intellectual Propert Depart-ment in Thailand has called for copyright holders and copyright-fee collectors to exempt small and medium-sized businesses from paying fees for playing music to customers and to send warning letters before taking legal action. After meeting with 19 copyright owners and 29 ...
JICA provides grant for scholarships, bridge repair
The Ministry of Planning and Investment and the Japan International Cooperation Agency on 8 July signed a grant agreement for two aid projects for Human Resource Development Scholarships from 2016 to 2020 and Reconstruction of Bridges on National Road No. 9, worth about 2.836 billion yen. The ...
Ho Chi Minh City plans new bridge to industrial hub Dong Nai
Ho Chi Minh City is asking for permission to build a new bridge and make it easier to travel to the neighboring industrial hub Dong Nai. In its proposal sent to the government, the city said a construction company plans to invest US$255.6 million on a ...
Nearly 4,000 bridges to be built in remote areas
The second phase of a bridge building programme, which aims at building nearly 4,000 bridges in remote areas, will be kicked off next month, said Nguyen Van Huyen, director of the Directorate for Roads of Viet Nam. Under the programme, a total of 3,959 bridges, including ...
Egat reaffirms coal-fired power plants
The Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand has confirmed it will complete six new coal-fired power plants by 2025 and boost its share of the power supply market to 50% from 37%. The six new coal-fired plants are expected to have a combined capacity of 4,390 ...
Vietnamese scoff at bike-ban plan as motorcycles engulf capital
World famous for its endless swarms of motorcycles, Vietnam is considering banning bikes in the capital over fears its leafy streets will become overrun as the population swells and its middle class buys up cars in record numbers. Hanoi is forecast to have seven million motorcycles ...
Farmers urge region government to restart Southwest New City project
A farmers group is pressing local authorities to resurrect the controversial Southwest New City project. Though the three companies selected to build the new city were ready to proceed on the basis of approval from the outgoing Yangon Region government, the incoming National League for ...
Worker traffic accidents down in ’16
The number of traffic accidents involving workers is down 28 per cent in the first six months of 2016 compared to the same period last year, Cambodia’s Ministry of Labour’s National Social Security Fund reported on 28 June. Accidents for 2016 through June totalled 2,259, with 2,849 ...
