Latest news with #VijianParamasivam
Barnama
6 days ago
- Politics
- Barnama
Ex-Thai DPM: Myanmar Must End Conflict Or Face Humanitarian Crisis
By Vijian Paramasivam PHNOM PENH, May 30 (Bernama) -- Former Thai Deputy Prime Minister Prof Dr Surakiart Sathirathai said Myanmar military leaders and all resistance groups must end the conflict immediately, failing which could drive the nation into a catastrophic humanitarian crisis. Surakiart, who was also the former Thai foreign minister, said the derailed peace process coupled with the recent earthquake has only punished millions of innocent Myanmar people. bootstrap slideshow At least 3.5 million have been displaced internally due to the armed conflict and the March earthquake killed over 3,800 people. According to the Myanmar Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan, 15.2 million or one in four people are already facing hunger in 2025. The current ceasefire, declared by the junta to facilitate relief efforts post-earthquake, will expire on May 31. '2025 is a crucial year for peace in Myanmar. We have to work together to ensure that the ceasefire and inclusive dialogue can take place before the election. 'The fighting on the ground that we have seen in the past years has come to the point that no one can win total control of the territory in Myanmar,' Surakiart, currently the Asian Peace and Reconciliation Council Chairman, told Bernama from Bangkok. The veteran politician served as Thailand's deputy prime minister between 2005 and 2006 and was the foreign minister from 2001 to 2005.
Barnama
6 days ago
- Business
- Barnama
Cambodian Women Rising To Tap Global Fishery Products Market
Using modern techniques in the post-harvesting, drying fish in a solar dryer dome. Credit: UNIDO Cambodia By Vijian Paramasivam PHNOM PENH, May 30 (Bernama) -- Cambodian women are stepping up in the fishery products sector, transforming their roles from traditional producers to key players in the global market. Enterprising women entrepreneurs, dominating at least 60 per cent of the micro and small informal enterprises, are now upgrading their post-harvest processing skills in the fishery sector to penetrate high-end markets. bootstrap slideshow The United Nations Industrial Development Organisation's (UNIDO) CAPFISH-Capture - a post-harvest fisheries development project - is helping Cambodian women to upskill, shifting from their archaic fish processing techniques to world-recognised standards. 'We supported over 51 fishery enterprises and their value chain actors in upgrading their businesses. Thirty-five of these enterprises are led by women and three persons with disabilities. 'We are now linking them with global buyers from the EU (European Union). Some of the enterprises have already started exporting to China, South Korea and Australia,' UNIDO's CAPFISH-Capture Chief Technical Advisor Dr Shetty Seetharama Thombathu told Bernama. CAPFISH-Capture is a five-year project, co-funded by the European Union and implemented by UNIDO in coordination with the Cambodia Fisheries Administration. Fishing is a vital economic lifeline for Cambodia. About six million people are employed both directly and indirectly in the domestic fisheries sector. The post-harvest fishery activities alone employ an estimated 33,000 workers, the majority of them are women. Fish remains a staple diet for Cambodians and their per capita consumption of fish is 54 kilogrammes, considered higher among its ASEAN peers.
Barnama
25-05-2025
- Climate
- Barnama
WFP Warns Of Food Scarcity Hitting Millions As Monsoon Looms In Myanmar
By Vijian Paramasivam PHNOM PENH, May 25 (Bernama) -- The World Food Programme (WFP) warns that about one million people in earthquake-hit areas in Myanmar urgently need aid — foodstuff, medicine, and shelter — as the ferocious monsoon rains loom over the Southeast Asian nation. Weather-triggered disasters are expected to further compound the misery of 3.5 million displaced people already mired in food scarcity and lack of decent shelters since the March 28 earthquake that wrecked parts of the country. 'It is still quite difficult. It has been seven weeks and the challenge is when humanitarian needs are much higher and the funding is on a downward trajectory. 'We estimated roughly one million people would immediately need assistance, at least food security assistance,' WFP Emergency Coordinator and Team Leader in Mandalay Sudip Joshi told Bernama, from one of the epicentres that was badly ruined by the natural disaster. The other epicentre of the deadly 7.7-magnitude earthquake is Sagaing. Almost 3,800 people lost their lives in the tragedy. The tropical monsoon is expected to begin in May, with June and July facing a treacherous rainy season. The tropical monsoon ebbs away in October before unleashing torrents of flash floods, landslides, lightning strikes, and heavy rainfall. ReliefWeb last week said Myanmar is a very high-risk country for hazards and exposure to humanitarian crises and disasters, ranking 11 out of 191 countries on the INFORM Risk Management Index. Donor-fatigue, prolonged civil war between the military and ethnic armed groups, damaged infrastructure, and weather threats will trigger widespread hardship for the displaced people, said aid workers.
Barnama
19-05-2025
- Business
- Barnama
Poor Economic Conditions Keeping Lao Children Out Of School
Rising inflation, coupled with other macroeconomic challenges, is impacting Laos' growth. (Photo Credit World Bank) By Vijian Paramasivam PHNOM PENH, May 19 (Bernama) -- Children from low-income households in Laos continue to face barriers in accessing basic education. The World Bank's latest data revealed that as of January 2025, 11.4 per cent of school-age children from disadvantaged backgrounds were not enrolled in school. bootstrap slideshow This figure is more than double the 4.5 per cent rate observed among their peers from wealthier families. Laos, one of the five socialist countries in the world, continues to face socio-economic challenges, including rising inflation, currency depreciation, poverty, and a weak labour market. The inflation level in the landlocked country is around 11 per cent as of March, while the per capita income is about RM37,500 (US$8,700). While access to basic education has improved over the years, schooling remains a distant dream to underprivileged groups. Families continue to face difficulties in enrolling their children in schools due to the rising cost of living and limited income. 'The transformation of the labour market in Laos is astonishingly quick,' World Bank Country Manager for Laos Alex Kremer said in a statement last week.
Barnama
18-05-2025
- Health
- Barnama
Malaysian-Led Smile Cambodia Transforms Lives Of Kids With Facial Deformities
By Vijian Paramasivam PHNOM PENH, May 18 (Bernama) -- A prominent Malaysian banker-turned-social worker brings joy to many rural Cambodians who had previously isolated themselves from society due to congenital facial deformities. Children and adults who once lived with birth defects, such as cleft lips and palates, can now smile with confidence and interact with their friends and families free from stigma. bootstrap slideshow This life-changing transformation is largely credited to Chan Kok Choy, the Vice-Chairman and Executive Director of Smile Cambodia, who has relentlessly led his team to carry out numerous surgical missions. 'It gives me happiness to see these patients smile again and their families happy. As Malaysians, we seldom see many people with cleft lip problems (in Malaysia) because our medical care is good. 'Cleft lips and palate deformities are not something difficult to treat, it can be done in an hour, and the recovery is fast,' Chan told Bernama in an interview in the capital recently. Chan, who previously headed a major Malaysian bank in Phnom Penh and later led a Cambodian bank, has been at the helm of Smile Cambodia since 2015. Smile Cambodia is a member of Smile Asia, an international alliance of charities that provides free surgery to children born with cleft lips, cleft palates, and other facial deformities. Smile Cambodia was established after Operation Smile Cambodia ceased its operations in Cambodia in early 2015. Operation Smile and Smile Cambodia have conducted nearly 5,700 operations in total in the Kingdom so far. Chan was also the chairman of Operation Smile Cambodia.
