The Bangkok Post
Phuket removes encroaching shops on Surin beach
Authorities on 20 April demolished 36 shops illegally occupying parts of popular Surin beach as part of a campaign to regulate businesses on 50 beaches in this island province. Most proprietors had cooperated before officers moved in, but not all. Keep reading ...
Mekong water crisis compounded by rice-killing drought
The 3.6 hectares in southern Vietnam that double as rice paddy and shrimp pond for farmer Nguyen Thi Tam have become a wasteland. After the worst drought in 90 years, almost nothing grows. It’s not that easy to switch, said Nguyen Trung Kien, vice chairman of ...
Turning crisis into opportunity
“We need to restructure the agricultural sector since we can no longer rely on the current four major farm products — rice, rubber, tapioca and sugar cane– as the government must always subsidise these product because their prices fluctuate,” Finance Minister Apisak Tantivorawong has said. Keep ...
Thailand to host global summit
Thailand will become the first country in the Asean region to host the world’s biggest tourism summit. The 2017 World Travel & Tourism Council Global Summit will be held in Bangkok on April 26-27, 2017. The most influential travel and tourism event of the year will ...
China to release more water to alleviate SE Asia drought
China will release more water from a dam in its southwestern province of Yunnan to help alleviate a drought in parts of Southeast Asia, China’s Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday, following an initial release begun last month. Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen expressed concern on 11 ...
Vietnam warns of dire impact from planned Mekong dams
Vietnam has predicted “very high adverse effects” on the Mekong River environment and economy if 11 proposed dams are built on its lower mainstream. Mekong River Commission said it considers the report an internal document and is not yet releasing it. Vietnam has not released ...
Bid forms for SEZs set for next week
Companies interested in developing state land into special economic zones in Trat, Mukdahan and Nong Khai provinces can buy the bid documents between April 11 and 19, says the head of the Treasury Department in Thailand. SEZ development is a major government policy aimed at boosting investment ...
PTT facing new gas pipeline suit
The Office of the Ombudsman lodged a complaint with the Administrative Court Monday demanding PTT Plc return all gas pipelines to the state. The Ombudsman accused PTT Plc, and 10 other defendants, of not returning offshore natural gas pipelines to the state after the Supreme ...
Drought killing next year's sugar crop
The El Nino weather phenomenon has played havoc with crops across Southeast Asia and beyond. Thailand, the world’s second-largest sugar exporter, will ship 20% less of the sweetener to international markets this year than last, and farmers fear the damage already inflicted on young cane ...
Wissanu confirms election to take place in 2017
The first general election in two years will definitely take place next year regardless of the referendum’s outcome although it may not be in July as planned earlier, according to Thailand’s Deputy Prime Minister Wissanu Krea-ngam. Keep reading ...