Economy and industry
Garment firms focus on social responsibility
Unions are welcome, and could help garment factories improve their corporate social responsibility functions, a leading manufacturer has said. U Aung Myo Hein, central executive committee member of Myanmar Garment Manufacturers’ Association, told The Myanmar Times that many factories in Myanmar had missed out on ...
New day dawns for Yangon bus system
Today it begins – Yangon’s brand new experiment in public transport. In a major step toward reducing consumer chaos and hazardous competition among private bus lines, the number of routes has been reduced to only 61, starting on January 16. On January 14, Yangon Region Chief ...
Yangon’s extreme poverty needs action: report
In a one-room hut in north Yangon, a middle-aged woman has a trick for those evenings when the children complain of hunger and she has run out of money and rice. “I ask them to drink extra water and go to bed,” said mother-of-seven Daw ...
Myanmar voices commitment to social development In Naga self-administered zone
Myanmar government has voiced commitment to the social development of the ethnic people in Naga Self-Administered Zone, northwestern Sagaing region, Myanmar News Agency reported Monday, according to China’s Xinhua news agency. President U Htin Kyaw made the pledge Sunday in his speech at the opening of ...
New study analyses biggest threats to Southeast Asian biodiversity
Southeast Asia is a global biodiversity hotspot — but with about 4 billion people living in the region, the pressures on that biodiversity are severe. Southeast Asia is a global biodiversity hotspot — but with about 4 billion people living in the region, the pressures on ...
Abe vows continued support for Jokowi and ASEAN
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on January 15 called for a peaceful resolution to the South China Sea conflict and pledged Japan’s continued support for ASEAN, as the grouping turns 50 this year. Speaking after bilateral meetings with Indonesian President Joko Widodo in Bogor, West ...
Sugar yield quells ethanol shortage fear
Ethanol shortage concerns in Thailand have subsided on the good sugar yield from the latest sugar cane crop, providing abundant molasses for the ethanol industry, says a senior industrial official. Thai SugarMillers Corporation Ltd, which includes all Thai 52 sugar factories, said the current 2016/17 ...
Vientiane residents irked over proposed road fund
A large number of Vientiane residents are concerned about a proposed road fund to which they would be required to contribute, the Vientiane People’s Council heard on Friday. Addressing other members of the Council, Mr Prachit Xayavong said We admit there are concerns about the ...
US builds blood centre for southern provinces
The US Embassy to Laos has built a blood centre in Champassak province as one of several major infrastructure assistance projects completed last year, at a total cost of over US$850,000. The new blood centre will provide emergency blood services to people in the southern ...
China to buy 20,000 tonnes of organic rice from Laos
China has approved the purchase of 20,000 tonnes of organic rice a year from Laos, according to Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith. Mr Thongloun said in talks with Khong district authorities in Champassak province last week that Chinese premier Li Keqiang had agreed to the deal. The ...