The Royal Irrigation Department (RID) is attempting to allay concerns raised over a plan to construct a cluster of seven reservoirs around the Dong Phayayen-Khao Yai Forest Complex by saying the project is still at its study phase.
Category: Region
Selected environmental stories from media outlets in the Mekong region and beyond.
Regulators set out sustainable finance initiatives
Thailand’s Working Group on Sustainable Finance has set out five key strategic initiatives to promote sustainable finance across the financial sector. The Working Group comprises the Fiscal Policy Office, the BOT (Bank of Thailand), the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission), the OIC (Office of Insurance Commission), and the SET (Stock Exchange of Thailand).
Hardy hybrid rice helps sow seeds of success
But large-scale hybrid rice seed production still requires refinement and a deeper understanding of market needs, and by and large remains priced out of reach for smallholder farmers.
UNICEF says Cambodian children at very high risk of climate change impacts
Citing the first UNICEF global report on “The Climate Crisis Is a Child Rights Crisis: Introducing the Children’s Climate Risk Index”, the statement said Cambodian children ranked the world’s 46th most vulnerable among 163 countries and regions.
Programme promotes India-Mekong Sub-region cross-border trade
A programme to promote cross-border trade connectivity between India and countries in the Greater Mekong Sub region (GMS) was jointly held by trade promotion agencies of Cambodia, Vietnam, India and Thailand on August 19.
The Kachin insurgency could cut off Myanmar’s junta from the $30 billion jade trade
The KIA threat to Hpakant and Myitkyina could cut off the military from the lucrative jade trade.
The jade trade is estimated to be worth $31 billion annually. The Tatmadaw and major EAOs rely on jade to bolster their war chests and to line their leaders’ pockets.
Chinese keen on Yuam River scheme
A Chinese company is interested in investing in the project to build a tunnel to divert water from the Yuam River in Mae Hong Son to refill Bhumibol Dam in Tak. Most people who stand to be affected are ethnic Karen.
Sustainable agriculture: economic backbone of Mekong Delta province
Le Huu Toan, deputy director of the department, said the province, which is the country’s top rice producer, has already sown two rice crops, with high-quality varieties accounting for 80 percent of the total area. It aims to have annual paddy output of 4 million tonnes this year, up 1.3 percent against the plan this year.
Bridging geopolitics and infrastructure in Southeast Asia
For developing countries in Southeast Asia, growing global interest in their infrastructure needs has been cause for both excitement and concern. In 2021, the G7 announced its support for the US-led ‘Build Back Better World’ (B3W) initiative, while the European Union unveiled its own ‘Globally Connected Europe’ infrastructure strategy.