News
DASTA joins forces with Mekong Institute to advance tourism in GMS
The Designated Areas for Sustainable Tourism Administration (DASTA) has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Mekong Institute to strengthen sustainable tourism in the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS). The Mekong Institute, an intergovernmental organisation in Khon Kaen, Thailand, promotes regional cooperation through capacity-building programmes for the countries ...
Foreigners pull record US$5b as Southeast Asian stocks sink
Foreign investors are selling Southeast Asian stocks at the fastest pace on record as the region’s economic outlook worsens and the US gets closer to raising interest rates. Overseas funds unloaded a net US$5.1 billion (S$7.28 billion) of Indonesian, Thai and Philippine shares in the third ...
Laos segment of China-Singapore railway expected to begin construction in November
A transnational railway linking China and Singapore is set to be constructed. The construction of the segment in Laos will start in November. Keep reading ...
Asian currencies set for worst quarter in 17 years
Asian currencies are headed for their biggest quarterly loss since the Asian financial crisis, having been battered by China’s surprise devaluation of the yuan and the prospect of a US interest-rate increase. The Bloomberg-JPMorgan Asia Dollar Index, which tracks the region’s 10 most-active currencies outside of ...
Southeast Asia’s transparency problem
Most countries in Southeast Asia do not have a transparent budget process, according to a global survey conducted by International Budget Partnership. The 2015 Open Budget Index used 140 observable facts and indicators to measure if a country’s budget system allows opportunities for adequate oversight and public ...
Thailand urged to streamline passage for Southeast Asian visitors
Thai tourist industry has called on the authorities to provide conveniences for visitors from neighboring states, millions of whom are expected to come over from early next year. Keep reading ...
Thai officials join ASEAN crime conference
Thai Interior Ministry and Royal Thai Police officials on 28 September joined the tenth ASEAN conference on transnational crime in Malaysia. Among issues discussed was illegal wildlife trading and drug trafficking, to reduce such problems in ASEAN. Keep reading ...
Declaration on transnational crime to boost ASEAN ties
The Kuala Lumpur Declaration in Combating Transnational Crime will see an expansion of cooperation among ASEAN members on sea piracy. Keep reading ...
Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam talk safety
Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam agreed to maintain close co-ordination to ensure security, order and safety at their shared border during the second joint conference of their Defence and Security Committees in Laos’ Champasak Province on 28 September. Keep reading ...
ADB to double climate financing to US$6b for Asia-Pacific
The Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) President Takehiko Nakao announced on 25 September that the ADB will double its annual climate financing to US$6 billion by 2020, up from the current US$3 billion. ADB’s spending on tackling climate change will rise to around 30 percent of its overall ...
