Article Archives

Failure to engage local communities is costing investors big money, according to a new analysis

By Nantiya Tangwisutijit November 27, 2015November 27, 2020

Conflicts between local communities in developing countries and governments and corporations seeking to exploit natural resources pose a serious threat to investors’ bottom lines, according to new research.
UK-based consultancy TMP Systems studied 262 agriculture, energy and mining sector disputes with local populations in developing countries and found that 67 percent of the time those conflicts had a materially significant impact on investors.

Land conflicts and human rights abuses in resource-rich developing countries from Southeast Asia to Latin America to Africa have become more and more common amidst growing demand for commodities like palm oil, soy and beef.

China poised to speed up nuclear power investment

By Nantiya Tangwisutijit November 27, 2015November 27, 2020

The development of nuclear power in China is set to gain momentum in the next five years as the country prepares to inject hundreds of billions of yuan into building nuclear plants. More than 100 nuclear power plants will be put into operation by 2020, with a nationwide capacity tripling that of 2014 to reach 58 million kilowatts, the China Times reported, citing a draft for the 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-20).

According to the document, the government is expected to invest about 500 billion yuan (S$109 billion) to build six to eight new plants annually during the period.

Minister says Dawei SEZ ‘like renovating some parts of an old house in order to prevent it from collapsing’

By Nantiya Tangwisutijit November 26, 2015

The Dawei Special Economic Zone has been championed by both the Myanmar and Thai governments as a promising industrial development for Myanmar, yet there have been difficulties getting the project off the ground.

According to the agreement, the initial phase of the project must be carried out on the 7-square-kilometre land allotted for the special zone, and 65 percent of construction must be completed within three years from the signing date. In the meantime, Italian-Thai Development has been building infrastructure such as roads, bridges, water supplies and buildings.

Leaked WWF report on illegal logging in Laos: “A worst-case scenario”

Paritta Wangkiat November 25, 2015January 11, 2024

A leaked WWF report exposes the scale of illegal logging in Laos. Almost all of timber exports from Laos go to Vietnam and China. In 2013, Laos exported 1.4 million cubic metres of timber to these two countries. That’s more than 10 times the official timber harvest in Laos.

Justice denied: the Thai activist who risked all to save his environment

Paritta Wangkiat November 25, 2015January 11, 2024

The recent Thai Supreme Court acquittal of three men who masterminded the murder of environmental activist Charoen Wat-aksorn, shows a skewed justice system that puts capitalism in front of community. But this is not the only case of the forced silence of environmentalists.

Letters From The Mekong: Time For A New Narrative On Mekong Hydropower

By Paritta Wangkiat November 24, 2015January 11, 2024

This issue brief – the second in Stimson’s “Letters from the Mekong” series – examines the current status of mitigation efforts at Laos’ Xayaburi and Don Sahong dam projects and the relevance of the existing narrative surrounding hydropower development on the river’s mainstream. Based on extensive research on the status and expected impacts of these projects, the authors of this brief have concluded that the current narrative of inevitability surrounding the future of the Mekong is increasingly at odds with what is in fact a very fluid situation. Instead of being the first two of up to nine or eleven mainstream “dominos” to fall, these commercial-opportunity projects are likely to face significantly increasing political and financial risks and uncertainties.