News
UN: Nearly a half-billion in Asia-Pacific still going hungry
Nearly a half-billion people in the Asia-Pacific are still malnourished and eliminating hunger by 2030 requires that millions escape food insecurity each month, according to a report released Wednesday by UN agencies. Data compiled by the United Nations show slow progress and even backsliding in the ...
Elaine Kurtenbach
Thailand returns orangutans to their Indonesian homeland
Wildlife authorities in Thailand sent two orangutans back to Indonesia on Friday as part of a collaborative effort to combat illicit wildlife trade. Ten-year-old female Cola and 7-year-old male Giant were transported from wildlife sanctuaries in the western province of Ratchaburi to Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport, where ...
Busaba Sivasomboon
South Korea backs Thai-led Mekong strategy
South Korea is urging Thailand to spearhead the Ayeyawady-Chao Phraya-Mekong Economic Cooperation Strategy (Acmecs) for sustainable water management, after President Moon Jae-in met with Asean leaders last month in Busan under Thailand’s year-long chairmanship. Thailand co-chaired the 2019 Asean-Republic of Korea Commemorative Summit and the first ...
Thana Boonlert
Vietnam to stop licensing large-scale solar projects
In a newly published policy document, Hanoi has urged regional governments and the country’s state-run utility, EVN, to suspend authorizations for new solar parks until further notice. Around 8.93 GW of utility-scale solar capacity is already approved for development in Vietnam, according to the Ministry ...
Emiliano Bellini
Currents of Time
A river can be timeless, but on no two days will its flowing course ever truly be the same. So it goes on the mighty Mekong. For thousands of years, this river has wound its way through much of Asia, shaping the land and lives of ...
Andrew Haffner
FM Don backs push for multilateralism
Thailand has joined the 52 other members of the Asia-Europe Meeting (Asem) in stressing the need to revitalise multilateralism amid ongoing challenges to the world order. The 14th Asem Foreign Ministers’ Meeting held in Madrid on Sunday and Monday ended with a chairman’s statement. “Ministers underlined the ...
Patrol finds 200 snares in forest community
More than 200 illegal snares have over the past two weeks been removed from the Prambei Mom Forest community area in Kampong Speu’s Thpong district. Liv Sarum said on Thursday that patrols of the forest community in Prambei Mom commune found the traps, with 117 of ...
Long Kimmarita
Mekong countries strengthen river management cooperation
The Mekong River Commission and the Lancang-Mekong Water Resources Cooperation Center have signed a memorandum of understanding to improve the management of the Mekong river. As part of the agreement, both organisations will research on drought and low flow scenarios in the lower and upper Mekong ...
Pech Sotheary
WB approves additional funding for disaster recovery in Laos
The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors Last Friday approved 50 million U.S. dollars of additional financing in Southeast Asia Disaster Risk Management Project in Laos and the Lao Road Sector Project II. The additional funding will help reduce the financing gap for reconstruction following widespread ...
Xuxin
Farming and Food: Hungry for change
The year is 2040 and the time is coming up to midday. Lunch at her office desk is the sole option for Sopheap Jing, one of the many people in Cambodia and elsewhere whose careers have become something of a paradox. Under-employed and over-qualified, Sopheap is ...
Simon Roughneen