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.
Category: Article
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.
Vietnamese children vulnerable to air pollution, flooding: UNICEF report
The report, namely ‘The Climate Crisis Is a Child Rights Crisis: Introducing the Children’s Climate Risk Index’, is the first comprehensive analysis of climate risks from a child’s perspective. It ranks countries based on children’s exposure to climate and environmental shocks, such as cyclones and heatwaves, as well as their vulnerability to those shocks, based on their access to essential services.
Australian mining company sells stake in Myanmar project
Myanmar Metals Limited said in a statement it had undertaken a detailed review of its assets and operations in Myanmar and determined that the political situation has undermined the confidence of markets
Wet-season dam operations hit Mekong ecology and communities
“With sudden changes in water flows and levels, communities [on the Mekong] have seen their riverbanks and boats washed away, and declines in fisheries [as well as] other aquatic resources which have devastated people’s livelihoods.”
Illegal logging on the rise in Arakan amid political instability: environmental group
While the forest resources in Arakan State were declining due to over-exploitation, the current political instability was exacerbating the situation and could lead to ecosystem degradation if not managed in time.
Mekong talks not inclusive
Attended by officials via an online communications platform, the organisers of the MRC/ASEAN meeting have been criticised for excluding members of local communities, civil society groups and NGOs, who have criticised management of the river in the past. Without meaningful engagement with civil society groups, each meeting will be just another talk shop.