This report, “International Labour Migration in a Changing Climate”, provides insights from Malaysia and Thailand on how, and in what contexts, international labour migration can be a viable adaptation strategy to climate change. The report provides experiences and perspectives of migrant workers, employers and government representatives on the topic. This …
A giant dam is about to be built. Protests are about to erupt. What looked like an admittedly temporary reprieve for the swift currents and extraordinary biodiversity of the Mekong river is now over. In December the Mekong River Commission (MRC), an intergovernmental body made up of Cambodia, Laos, Thailand …
In course of a decade, Nepal and four other countries in the South-East Asia Region, namely Bhutan, DPR Korea, Thailand and Sri Lanka have brought down the number of confirmed malaria cases by more than half, WHO said in a statement issued on the occasion of the World Malaria Day, …
A tsunami warning was issued yesterday by the Disaster Management Center for coastal areas in Sri Lanka as an earthquake of the magnitude of 8.6 on the Richter scale struck the west coast of Northern Sumatra around 2.08pm local time. Tremors were felt in several parts of the island including …
Thailand's national disaster prevention centre issued a tsunami warning for six southern provinces along the Andaman coast on Wednesday after a huge earthquake struck off the coast of Indonesia. People in Phuket, Krabi, Ranong, Phangnga, Trang and Satun were ordered to move to higher ground because of a possible tsunami, …
An 8.7 magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of Indonesia on Wednesday, sending residents around the region dashing out of their homes and offices in fear. A tsunami watch was issued for the whole Indian Ocean. The quake struck 308 miles (500 km) southwest of the city of Banda Aceh, …
Years after a malaria strain increasingly resistant to the most-effective drugs was confirmed from Cambodia in 2006, the artemisinin-resistant malaria has now been found to have spread along the Thailand-Burma border. According to 10-year-long study published in the Lancet medical journal, the containment strategy will have to be reconsidered if …
The average life expectancy of people in the South and South-East Asia will rise to 75 years in less than 40 years, WHO said Monday, insisting the number of aged people over 60 years will triple by 2050 from its current figure of 142 million. ‘Approximately 142 million people or …
Constructed wetlands (cws) for wastewater treatment may be part of the answer to the urgent need for a change in the approach to wastewater treatment in developing countries. Although thailand has several cws, there have been no studies of their sustainability. To remedy this, the sustainability of three promising cws …
Deforestation, evictions and high emissions - palm oil from Indonesia and Malaysia have a dubious reputation. Only a few suppliers meet EU sustainability criteria.
Natural disasters, such as Japan's earthquake and floods in Australia and Thailand, cost the global economy a record $370 billion in 2011, with losses for the insurance industry the second largest ever, Swiss Re (SRENH.VX) said on Wednesday. Insured catastrophe losses more than doubled in 2011 to $116 billion, Swiss …
Japanese auto major Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (MMC) plans to join compatriots Nissan Motor Limited and Suzuki Motor Corporation in setting up a global hub for manufacturing small cars in the country. The company is far behind its aggressive Japanese competitors, selling only 4,000 vehicles annually. It is exploring the possibility …
BANGKOK: Thai authorities seized more than 200 live animals, including tigers and lions among other rare species, in a raid on an illegal wildlife supplier, police said. "The owner cannot provide legal documents for the five tigers, so he was charged with violating the Wild Animal Preservation and Protection law," …
Disasters led by the Japan earthquake cost the world a record figure of more than $380 billion last year, a UN official said Monday. While countries are managing to control the disaster death toll, economic costs are increasing more than ever before, said Margareta Wahlstrom, the UN special envoy on …
Anyone who has ever been sick—which I suppose includes everyone in the world—would have had firsthand experience of the callous ways of healthcare establishments. For the poor, healthcare is not available at most times. The rich pay through their nose and yet do not find succor. In 2003 public health …
Indian aquaculture farms are upbeat about the rising prospects of farmed shrimps in the overseas market. Both the black tiger and vannamei varieties from India have been going at a premium in the foreign market, particularly in Southeast Asia. A shortage of shrimps in countries like Thailand, Vietnam, Japan and …
After the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear disaster, Vietnam suspended its nuclear plans and waited for more than a decade before reviving them. But Vietnam was undeterred by last year's Fukushima nuclear meltdown in Japan, the world's worst atomic accident since Chernobyl, and is racing ahead with plans to start construction of …
Auto major Tata Motors on Friday said it plans to enter new global markets such as Thailand, Myanmar, Indonesia and Bangladesh with the 'Nano' within a year, as well as launch a CNG version of the small car in the domestic market. The company also said it plans to invest …
Toyota Motor Corp on Monday launched the world's most fuel-efficient hybrid car, as the company looks to fight off competition from pure electric vehicles. The compact car, dubbed 'Aqua' in Japan and the 'Prius C' overseas, has a listed fuel efficiency of 35.4 km/litre (83.3 mpg), beating the current top …
A wildly-colored gecko, a fish that looks like a gherkin, and a monkey with an Elvis-like hairstyle are among the more than 200 new species discovered in the Greater Mekong region last year, environmental group WWF said on Monday. The area's diversity is so astonishing that a new species is …
