News
What’s Behind Cambodia’s War on Fake News?
The government’s efforts to regulate fake news have raised concerns amid a wider campaign to suppress dissent as elections approach. Keep reading ...
Time’s running out for the Mekong giant catfish
Vietnamese restaurants are openly violating the law to include a critically endangered giant catfish on their menus. An expose by Rachel Nuwer in the National Geographic documents the precarious situation that the Mekong River’s giant catfish faces as a result of willful violations by both ...
Vietnam Prime Minister hopes for stronger ties with the US
Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc affirmed that Việt Nam attaches importance to its relations with the US at a reception for US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in Hà Nội on July 9. Keep reading ...
Giant river prawns recover in Mekong Delta after long decline
After a long period of decline, the last two years have seen an increase in output of giant river prawns in the Mekong Delta. Giant river prawns are resilient to disease, easy to raise, and require little capital. They also offer high and stable profitability ...
Mekong Delta faces a bleaker future than people realize
A combination of negative developments has put at serious risk the viability of Vietnam’s rice bowl as also the source of most of its seafood exports. Keep reading ...
Pushback against BRI in Southeast Asia
Southeast Asian nations are pushing back against China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), wary of Beijing’s creeping influence and unmanageable debts. Japan and India are seeking to capitalize on this setback and bolster their presence in the region, but standing up to Beijing could carry ...
MIST supports 10 travel companies
The Mekong Innovative Startups in Tourism (MIST) will support 10 innovative travel and hospitality companies in 2018. The programme, launched in 2016, is supported by the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the Australian Government and the six-government Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office. Keep reading ...
Asean May See Divisions Amid Heightened U.S.-China Competition: Analysts
In the two decades since Asean was formed, it has failed to uphold its original mandate of maintaining cohesion among its members, experts have said. The rise of China, the United States’ uncertain position on the region and instability in its member states have led some ...
5 years on, the Belt and Road Initiative's contribution to Asian integration
Chinese President Xi Jinping proposed the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) in 2013, calling for economic cooperation focused on connectivity and aimed at achieving win-win outcomes. The BRI is an example of China’s determination to support globalization as the world faces uncertainties, such as rising protectionist ...
Transboundary EIAs could reduce conflict over river projects
In the Mekong river basin, massive infrastructure projects – dams, road, high-speed rail and ports – are under construction. While these projects will improve connectivity between countries, harmful environmental impacts need to be minimised. National level environmental impacts assessments that ignore cross border impacts are likely ...
