The Indonesia Railway Development Consortium has announced plans to begin work in 2021 on a 400km rail line between Vietnam and Laos for a price of $1.9bn.The consortium is made up of INKA, Indonesia’s state-owned train maker, and Indonesian Railways Company, its main operating company. ...

Two Cambodian activists say they were briefly detained by authorities in Laos on 24 January after sneaking across the border to take photographs of the planned site of the Don Sahong hydropower dam, which regional governments and environmentalists fear could cut into critical fish stocks downstream. Chum ...

Over the last two decades, almost 1,000 hydropower dams have been built around the globe. And while these dams provide many benefits to farmers, wildlife and the climate, the costs of their construction on local communities where they are built has largely been left out ...

Thailand’s transport minister Saksayam Chidchob says the bridge, estimated to cost around BHT 4 billion (USD 1.2 billion), will most likely be funded by both countries. He added that the design study of the bridge is expected to cost around 140 million baht (USD 4.25 ...

Builders began to lay the first steel truss complex on Friday on Yuanjiang Railway Bridge－which has the tallest bridge pier in the world and the longest span between two piers－on the Chinese section of the 925.5-kilometer China-Laos railway, a major project in the Belt and ...

Vietnamese enterprises are displaying handicraft items, food and technologies at the Vientiane Expo 2015, which kicked off in Vientiane, Laos on 28 November. Keep reading ...

The e-commerce market in Laos is set to take off amidst the rapid growth of internet penetration in the region but the country still does not have laws to regulate such activities, experts have noted. This has resulted in Laos losing out on the benefits ...

Late last week, Vietnam handed over some assistance to Laos and Cambodia as the two fellow Southeast Asian states continue to manage the impact of the global coronavirus pandemic. While the development was in line with what Hanoi had previously signaled, it nonetheless put the ...

Laos, a nation of 7 million people wedged between China, Vietnam and Thailand, is opening a $5.9 billion Chinese-built railway that links China’s poor southwest to foreign markets but piles on potentially risky debt. The line through lush tropical mountains from the Laotian capital, Vientiane, to ...

Thai and international agencies have convened a meeting to discuss ways to bolster efforts against human trafficking along the border.    The Ministry of Social Development and Human Security’s Anti-Human Trafficking Division, the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the non-governmental organisation Alliance Anti-Trafic met to discuss ...

One more year may be needed for the further development of Laos’ civil code while the drafting sub-committee must make a concerted effort to reach their target. National Assembly President Ms Pany Yathotou on May 16 summarised the Assembly’s debate on the draft of the civil ...

The Lao Government has entrusted a committee in charge to negotiate with China to lower the interest rate of a loan Laos intends to borrow from China to develop the planned Laos-China rail project. Minister of Public Works and Transport Dr Bounchanh Sinthavong told the recent ...

The Laos-China Railway Co., Ltd. (LCRC) has outlined various problems that the government needs to address in relation to railway operations, with the issues being raised during a visit by Deputy Prime Minister Dr Sonexay Siphandone. The company also asked that the Bank of the ...

Pongpet Mekloy argues that Thailand and Laos need to work closer together in order to capitalise on their joint attractions that line the mighty river. Research by Si Sa Ket Rajabhat University is highlighted, which investigated the potential for tourism along the international river, focusing on the ...

Frustrated by Laos ploughing ahead with its controversial Don Sahong dam despite past promises to consult neighbouring countries, Cambodian civil society representatives have called on Prime Minister Hun Sen, US President Barack Obama and ASEAN chair Le Luong Minh to raise the issue at next week’s ...

A Supreme Administrative Court judge rapporteur has suggested it will rule in favour of five state agencies accused of violating laws in their handling of the Xayaburi Dam project in Laos. The judge opinion was the case against them be dismissed, as the five state agencies in ...

Vietnamese businesses have performed well in Laos and contributed to local economic growth over the last five years despite the lingering impact of the global economic crisis, a report revealed. Delivered at a congress of the Vietnam Business Association in Vientiane, Laos late last week, Laos ...

The government has opened assistance centres in Thailand to help Lao workers there who currently hold purple cards (work permits), to ensure they are fully legal and are registered with the authorities. The centres are operating from August 28 until the end of February 2018. ...

A group of UN experts* called on governments and relevant businesses to take immediate action to address ongoing human rights violations experienced by survivors of a tragic dam collapse in the Lao People’s Democratic Republic nearly two years ago. “Thousands of survivors lost everything and continue ...

The recently signed Joint General Scheme of Mohan–Boten Economic Cooperation Zone is the first cross-border economic cooperation zone that China has established in Laos and, for that matter, in the whole of Southeast Asia. The deal hints at the Asian giant’s goal to expand its ...