The Nation - Open Development Mekong

Lancang-Mekong countries vow to target telecom and cyber fraud

saowalakj — Thu, 20 Nov 2025 08:13:41 +0000

Senior officials from China, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam pledged at a ministerial-level meeting on Friday to deepen law enforcement cooperation and launch coordinated crackdowns targeting telecom and cyber fraud.

Delegates from these countries convened in Kunming, Yunnan province, to focus on combating telecom and cyber fraud. They reaffirmed their shared determination to coordinate multinational crackdowns and agreed to strengthen extradition and intelligence-sharing mechanisms.

Representatives from Interpol, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, and the Lancang-Mekong Integrated Law Enforcement and Security Cooperation Centre attended the meeting as observers.

Members of the meeting underscored that cross-border telecom and cyber fraud has become a severe threat to regional economic development, public security, and social stability, inflicting heavy financial and emotional harm on citizens. They called for concerted efforts to eradicate such crime to protect the lawful rights and interests of people across the region.

Keep reading

The post Lancang-Mekong countries vow to target telecom and cyber fraud first appeared on Open Development Mekong.

Final Hurdle cleared for Thailand’s first law to protect ethnic groups’ way of life

saowalakj — Fri, 08 Aug 2025 05:10:07 +0000

Thailand’s House of Representatives clears the final hurdle for the first law protecting ethnic groups’ cultural rights and way of life.

The House of Representatives on Wednesday approved changes made by the Senate to a bill, clearing the final hurdle for the enactment of Thailand’s first law to guarantee the rights and protect the way of life of ethnic minority groups.

House Approves Senate Changes

The House cast 421 votes to approve the Senate’s changes to the Bill on the Protection and Promotion of the Way of Life of Ethnic Groups, with no votes against.

The Senate had approved the third reading of the bill on January 8, making changes to certain wordings but not altering the bill’s core principles. One key change was replacing the term “groups of people” with “Thais” in the definition of ethnic groups.

Key Changes in the Bill

The Senate’s revision defined ethnic groups as Thai people who live together as one or several groups, originating and residing in Thailand. They share a collective identity and have developed cultures, languages, ways of life, wisdom, and beliefs based on common traditions or a historical and cultural continuity connected to Thai society.

Additionally, in Chapter 5, the Senate replaced the term “charter” with “rules” in provisions related to governing zones designated for protecting the way of life of ethnic groups.

Bill Moves to Royal Command

Since the Senate’s changes were considered significant, the House had to decide whether to approve or reject them. With the House’s approval, the bill will now be submitted for royal command to be enacted into law.

Paetongtarn Congratulates Ethnic Groups

Suspended Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra, also serving as Culture Minister, congratulated the ethnic groups after the House approved the bill.

“Today marks a key milestone for Thai society,” Paetongtarn said. “This is what the ethnic groups have been waiting for—to guarantee their cultural rights, as well as their opportunities and quality of life with pride and dignity.”

Promoting Cultural Diversity and Equality

Paetongtarn further stated that the bill would help promote the potential of ethnic groups based on their culture, while ensuring their way of life is protected. The bill’s passage sends a message to the world that Thailand embraces cultural diversity with equality and acceptance for all groups.

“I would like to congratulate the ethnic people for this milestone where Thai society will embrace all cultural groups as constructive forces for our country,” Paetongtarn added.

Key Principles of the Bill

The bill focuses on the protection and promotion of cultural rights, as stated in Article 70 of the Constitution of the Kingdom of Thailand (B.E. 2560). It has three main principles:

Protection of cultural rights: Safeguarding all ethnic groups from rights violations and ensuring access to basic rights.
Promotion of ethnic groups’ potential: Creating opportunities for development.
Equality: Ensuring fair and equal treatment for all.

Five Key Points of the Bill

The bill contains five key points:

Basic rights and protection: Ensures ethnic groups’ rights and freedoms, preventing discrimination based on race (Sections 5-12).
Integrated management mechanism: Establishes a Committee for the Protection and Promotion of Ethnic Group Lifestyles chaired by the Prime Minister, with representatives from relevant agencies, ethnic groups, experts, and development organizations (Sections 13-20).
Ethnic group participation: Creates the National Ethnic Group Life Protection and Promotion Council to serve as a coordination and knowledge exchange center (Sections 21-31).
Ethnic group database: Establishes a national database to protect and promote ethnic group lifestyles (Sections 32-36).
Positive measures: Implements co-management areas for ethnic group lifestyles, respecting community rights while conserving resources (Sections 37-42).

Read the original news post >>

The post Final Hurdle cleared for Thailand’s first law to protect ethnic groups’ way of life first appeared on Open Development Mekong.

AI forecasts: Can Southeast Asia rise above the Mekong floods?

saowalakj — Wed, 22 Jan 2025 07:35:02 +0000

As the Mekong River flows through Southeast Asia, it shapes the region’s life, culture, and landscape. But in 2024, the river’s familiar presence has taken a more daunting turn. Torrential rains fueled by Typhoon Yagi, combined with a relentless monsoon season, have unleashed severe flooding across Southeast Asia, forcing communities to grapple with an unpredictable, intensifying flood crisis.

Talking about floods, are nothing new to the Mekong Basin. But last year, following half a decade of drought, the flood left villages in Vietnam, Thailand, Myanmar, and northern Laos submerged, with vast farmlands and homes swept away.

The story of the 2024 flood season underscores a sobering reality: we may not be able to eliminate floods, but we can find innovative ways to reduce their devastating impact.

Keep reading

The post AI forecasts: Can Southeast Asia rise above the Mekong floods? first appeared on Open Development Mekong.

Vietnam to purchase wind power from Laos: EVN

saowalakj — Mon, 25 Dec 2023 09:07:27 +0000

EVN urged the MoIT to review and submit to the Prime Minister the proposal to import electricity from the Trong Son Wind Power Plant, including additional planning for transmission lines. The purchase price for electricity from this project is 6.95 cents/kWh, equivalent to about VND1,700/kWh.

The MoIT confirmed it has received a document requesting feedback from relevant ministries and localities on the proposal to purchase wind power from the plant, with a capacity of 250MW, from Bolikhamsai Province in Laos to Vietnam, as proposed by EVN.

According to the ministry, the plant is expected to start operation in the fourth quarter of 2025.

Keep reading

The post Vietnam to purchase wind power from Laos: EVN first appeared on Open Development Mekong.

Cambodia’s fishery exports dive amid dearth of processing experts

saowalakj — Fri, 19 Aug 2022 04:51:05 +0000

A senior official noted that the country lags behind in technical expertise when it comes to turning raw fish and other aquatic species into higher-value items.

In the first seven months of 2022, total freshwater and marine fishery production amounted to 24,500 tonnes and 6,860 tonnes, respectively, falling by 7,410 tonnes and 100 tonnes on a yearly basis, reported the Fisheries Administration (FiA), which is under the Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Ministry.

Keep reading

The post Cambodia’s fishery exports dive amid dearth of processing experts first appeared on Open Development Mekong.

Agriculture Ministry issues water plan as rainy season looms

saowalakj — Tue, 10 May 2022 08:08:35 +0000

Farmers should also store as much rainwater as possible and use it efficiently, said Agriculture Minister Chalermchai Sree-on on Monday.

“We cannot tell how many storms will hit Thailand this year, but we have ordered RID to prepare personnel and drainage equipment to deal with upcoming issues,” he said.

The rainy season will last from mid-May to mid-October, according to the Thai Meteorological Department. It forecast continuous rain across the country this week, with isolated heavy showers in the South.

Chalermchai said the Department of Agricultural Extension is drawing up a plan to grow crops that use less water, such as corn for animal feed. He expects to see the finished plan this week.

Keep reading

The post Agriculture Ministry issues water plan as rainy season looms first appeared on Open Development Mekong.

One million free cannabis plants handed out from next month: Anutin

saowalakj — Tue, 10 May 2022 06:55:41 +0000

From June 9, people in Thailand will be able to grow “as many cannabis plants” as they like in their own homes, according to Anutin.

The cannabis grown must be of medical grade and used for medicinal purposes only. Official registration is not required for growing weed at home.

Anutin announced the move on Sunday, in a Facebook post that also outlined the separate benefits of commercial cultivation.

It is currently legal in Thailand for registered companies to sell cannabis products with less than 0.2 per cent tetrahydrocannabinol or THC, the psychoactive compound in marijuana that gets people “high”.

Keep reading

The post One million free cannabis plants handed out from next month: Anutin first appeared on Open Development Mekong.

Asean sees jump in new Covid cases and deaths

saowalakj — Fri, 20 Aug 2021 02:45:44 +0000

Asean countries confirmed 95,081 new cases, higher than Wednesday’s 82,265, while deaths rose to 2,786 from the previous day’s 2,300.

The number of Covid-19 cases crossed 9.04 million across the region with 198,480 deaths

Philippines reported 14,895 new cases and 258 deaths on Thursday, bringing cumulative cases in the country to 1,791,003 and deaths to 30,881.

The Philippine government has allocated 45.3 billion pesos (Bt28 billion) to procure Covid-19 vaccines to be provided as a booster shot or a third jab for those who had earlier received two jabs. Eight brands of vaccine have been approved for this project, including mRNA types such as Pfizer and Moderna.

Keep reading

The post Asean sees jump in new Covid cases and deaths first appeared on Open Development Mekong.

Herd of rare banteng spotted in Huai Kha Khaeng

saowalakj — Mon, 17 May 2021 03:11:06 +0000

Rangers and a professional photographer exploring the Huai Kha Khaeng Wildlife Sanctuary were in for a treat on May 11 when they spotted and quickly photographed more than 60 banteng cows and bulls, which are listed as endangered species.

“Rangers and Athit Nima, a professional photographer, have been patrolling the Pong Chang Pheuk area, which links the Nakhon Sawan forest to Huai Kha Khaeng in Uthai Thani province, in a bid to record wildlife in their natural habitat for educational purposes,” said Thani Nuyim, director of the region 12 wildlife sanctuary office, on Wednesday.

“They spotted two groups of banteng eating grass, the big one had around 45 cattle and the small one about 15,” he said.

“They also spotted several other animals during their trip, including wild boar, barking deer, deer and peacocks. Seeing these rare animals in the forest is proof that our natural resources are still abundant,” Thani beamed.

Keep reading

The post Herd of rare banteng spotted in Huai Kha Khaeng first appeared on Open Development Mekong.

NHSO keeps improving healthcare financial payment system as fighting COVID-19

saowalakj — Fri, 07 May 2021 05:00:16 +0000

The COVID-19 outbreak continues to strain healthcare providers physically and financially. As they have to cope with the increased workload associated with screening patients for the new coronavirus infection and treating them if they are infected, the extra work always come with extra costs.

Even though, these costs will definitely repay for later, the usual speed of financial reimbursement may no longer be fast enough for many healthcare facilities to catch up with a rapid rise in their operation costs.

National Health Security Office (NHSO) is well aware of this problem and trying to adjust its health financial reimbursement system in order to better cope with the changing situation of COVID-19 and its financial impact on these healthcare providers.

Keep reading

The post NHSO keeps improving healthcare financial payment system as fighting COVID-19 first appeared on Open Development Mekong.