Environment and land
No violations of timber ban, forestry sector reports
There have been no violations of the ban on timber exports to foreign countries from the provinces after the Prime Minister issued the order almost nine months ago, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry. Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Forestry, Mr Thongphath Vongmany ...
Laos, China launch plant inspection and quarantine project
Laos will benefit from a new plant inspection and quarantine development project with a feasibility study looking at improving the protection of agriculture and forestry production along the country’s borders. An agreement to implement the project was signed on Friday in Vientiane between the Director ...
ASEAN energy cooperation: the only way to prevent ‘lights out’ in the region
The countries comprising Southeast Asia have witnessed steady economic growth and improving living standards since the Asian Financial Crisis. Having weathered the global fiscal and financial crisis better than most other parts of the world, Southeast Asia has become the third-fastest growing region in the ...
Green groups want paper giant to stop using drained peat in Indonesia
International and Indonesian NGOs are calling on the country’s largest paper company to stop using drained peat swamps for industrial agriculture. The practice, which relies on drying out the waterlogged soil so that acacia trees can be planted, has enabled vast new swaths of land ...
Study finds that carbon finance is not a one-size-fits-all solution to deforestation
Halting the pace at which we’re destroying the world’s forests for agriculture, forestry, mines, and other economic development projects is crucial to combating climate change. Carbon finance, which involves creating monetary incentives for companies and countries to invest in programs to reduce carbon emissions, is ...
Mechanized farming on the rise
The use of agricultural machinery in Cambodia has risen noticeably compared with last year, said the Agriculture Ministry. A ministry report released last week showed that the use of agriculture machinery rose to about 91 percent in 2016, compared with 83 percent in 2015, while ...
Trade officers prepare for Trump era
Amid concern over the impact on Thailand’s export growth of so-called “Trumponomics” under the new US president and the United Kingdom’s Brexit vote, Thai trade officers from 63 posts in 47 countries will attend a meeting in Bangkok on February 22 that has been called ...
Workers prepare ground for Laos-China railway
The construction of workers’ camps for the Laos-China railway is under way in Luang Namtha province but there is much to be done before work on the railway itself can begin. There are now 200 or 300 Chinese workers in the camps, but they are ...
Progress made on SEZ in Luang Prabang
The developer of a US$1.2 billion special economic zone in Luang Prabang province is in the process of demarcating the project site and building an access road. The project, which is being developed by the Phousy Group, will comprise an area of 4,850 hectares in ...
S'pore has strict criteria for sand imports, says Govt, as controversy over Cambodian imports brews
The Republic stopped importing sand from Cambodia after a ban took effect in November last year, said the Ministry of National Development as the issue of sand imports once again takes the spotlight. Responding to media queries, the MND also stressed that Singapore sets strict criteria ...
