Asean morning news for June 19

Asean morning news

Compiled by Stella-maris Ewudolu @stmarisewudolu

Malaysia proposes info-sharing within Asean to curb paedophile activities
Malaysia has proposed information-sharing among Asean member countries to enable convicted sex offenders to be identified in a bid to curb their activities, especially paedophiles.
— New Straits Times

Plans finalised for huge security operation for this weekend’s Asean Summit: Prawit
Deputy Prime Minister General Prawit Wongsuwan on Tuesday wrapped up security preparations ahead of the Asean Summit in Bangkok this weekend, for which a huge number of police will be mobilised and hi-tech equipment used to guard the meeting.
— The Nation

Thai chair and new branding of Asean
Now the election has passed and Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-o-cha has been named to head the soon-to-be civilian government.
— Bangkok Post

ASEAN Summit 2019
As the 34th ASEAN Summit this year is fast approaching, today we will explore the topics to be discussed at the conference in our special report, let’s have a look.
— NBT World (video)

USAID, ADB partner on $7-billion clean energy technical assistance program
PRIVATE-sector firms in the Philippines and other countries in the Asia and the Pacific region can access a new technical assistance support for clean energy investments from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB).
— Business Mirror

ASEAN to consider Timor Leste’s admission
Timor Leste may have to wait a little longer for admission into the current 10-nation ASEAN, as the regional organization prepares to send yet another team later this year to assess whether Southeast Asia’s smallest economy is ready for full-fledged membership.
— The Jakarta Post (paywall)

Asean meet to tackle Recto Bank case in ‘general terms’
THE alleged hit-and-run incident involving a Chinese militia vessel and a Filipino fishing boat in Recto Bank may be raised, but only “in general terms” during the 34th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) Summit in Thailand to be attended by President Duterte on June 22 and 23.
— Business Mirror

ASEAN meeting reports on global sugar deficit and opportunities for SE Asian countries
The ASEAN Sugar Alliance says there will be a global sugar deficit of about 2.5 million tonnes in 2019-20, and prices are expected to firm following a number of years of falling prices and surplus stocks.
— The Thaiger

ASEAN pushes forward on upholding human rights in business
ASEAN continues to push forward on upholding human rights in pursuit of economic prosperity as the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) conducted the 2019 AICHR Interregional Dialogue: Sharing Good Practices on Business and Human Rights on 10-11 June in Bangkok, Thailand.
— Thailand Business News

Modi, Duterte, Widodo have something in common – and it’s not just winning elections
This year, India, Thailand, the Philippines and Indonesia all held elections. About 1 billion voters were involved, all within a few weeks of one another.
— South China Morning Post

Malaysian banks top gender diversity in Southeast Asia
The nation’s large banks have the highest board representation for women across the Southeast Asian region, outpacing peers in Singapore and the Philippines where the proportion is below 15%.
— Free Malaysia Today

SE Asia should ban foreign trash imports: Environmentalists
Environmental groups called on Tuesday for Southeast Asian countries to ban waste imports from developed countries to help tackle a pollution crisis, as regional leaders prepare to meet this week in Bangkok.
— The Jakarta Post

ASEAN ICT Awards 2019 launched in Vietnam
The Ministry of Information and Communications hosted a ceremony in Hanoi on June 18 to announce the ASEAN ICT Awards 2019 (AICTA).
— Vietnamplus

Regional banks eye Southeast Asia
Regional financial groups are looking to expand further in Southeast Asia as the local market is getting smaller and more crowded, industry sources say.
— The Korea Times

New mapping application visualizes costs of developing renewable energy resources
A new report, “Exploring Renewable Energy Opportunities in Select Southeast Asian Countries: A Geospatial Analysis of the LCOE of Utility-Scale Wind and Solar PV,” finds that there is abundant potential for utility-scale, land-based wind and solar PV development across Southeast Asia.
— Phys.Org

ICAEW China and South-East Asia Business Challenge
THE ICAEW China and South-East Asia Business Challenge, into its fifth year, is an annual competition sponsored by Deloitte Southeast Asia and the Maybank Group; ICAEW stands for the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales.
— The Sun Daily

Cambodia morning news

Compiled by Justhine De Guzman Uy @justhine.aecnews

ARB ventures into Cambodia with RM83.5m ERP project
ARB Bhd, a wood products manufacturer which diversified into information technology a year ago, has teamed up with a Cambodian firm to implement the enterprise resource planning (ERP) system and solutions in that country.
— The Edge Markets

‘Laundering more pressing than EBA’
Deputy Prime Minister Sar Kheng said the loss of the EU’s Everything But Arms (EBA) trade preferences would affect Cambodia to some extent, but it would also give the Kingdom the opportunity to strengthen itself.
— The Phnom Penh Post

India, Cambodia to sign 18 MoUs in various sectors
The Embassy of India is set to sign 18 Memorandums of Understanding on quick impact projects across various sectors at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation tomorrow, according to a press release by the embassy.
— Khmer Times

See here for more of today’s Cambodia morning news

Indonesia morning news

Compiled by Justhine De Guzman Uy @justhine.aecnews

Sharp, LG to relocate factories to Indonesia
Japanese and Korean electronics companies Sharp Corp. and LG plan to relocate their factories from Thailand and Vietnam, respectively, to Indonesia as part of their investment consolidation plans in Southeast Asia.
— The Jakarta Post

Police’s Whatsapp Group Infiltration Backed by State Minister
The Communication and Informatics Minister Rudiantara expressed his support for the National Police’s decision to monitor public Whatsapp message groups to prevent criminal activities.
— Tempo.co

BKPM projects double-digit investment growth in 2019
Investment Coordinating Agency (BKPM) Head Thomas T. Lembong has forecast that Indonesia’s domestic and foreign investment would record double-digit growth, or over 10 percent, by the end of 2019.
— Antara News

See here for more of today’s Indonesia morning news

Lao PDR morning news

Compiled by Justhine De Guzman Uy @justhine.aecnews

Govt struggles to address budget deficit
The government has projected that the country’s budget deficit for the first six months of this year could increase to as much as 1.16 trillion kip, intensifying budgetary tension against the backdrop of continuing revenue shortfalls.
— Vientiane Times

Lao Front, UNICEF join hands to improve vulnerable children’s situation in Attapeu
A workshop to discuss children-related issues was organized on June 17 in Samakkhysay district of Attapeu province, co-chaired by Associate Professor Dr. SomOck Kingsada, Vice President of the Lao Front for National Development (LFND) and Mr Sisavanh Sengphaiboun, President of Attapeu LFND.
— KPL

Asean, China bolster police training against cross-border crime
Laos joined China, other Asean, and neighbouring countries to discuss mutual support in developing police academies and training institutes to prevent transnational crime and boost law enforcement capacity building.
— Vientiane Times (paywall)

See here for more of today’s Lao morning news

Malaysia morning news

Compiled by Sreypov Men @MenSreypov

Malaysia banks lead South-east Asian peers for board diversity
Malaysia’s large banks have the highest board representation for women across the South-east Asian region, outpacing peers in Singapore and the Philippines where the proportion is below 15 per cent.
— The Straits Times

Malaysia expects frozen durian exports to China to hit 1,000 metric tonnes monthly
Malaysia’s exports of frozen whole durians to China are expected to reach 1,000 metric tonnes every month, said the country’s Agriculture and Agro-based Ministry.
— Channel NewsAsia

Malaysian lorry entering Singapore caught with 3,000 cartons of contraband cigarettes
Officers of the island republic’s Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) caught a Malaysia-registered lorry with 3,000 cartons of duty-unpaid cigarettes at the Woodlands Checkpoint on Saturday.
— New Straits times

See here for more of today’s Malaysia Morning News

Myanmar morning news

Compiled by Sreypov Men @MenSreypov

Ministry reminds tourism operators to transact in kyat
The Ministry of Hotels and Tourism (MOHT) has issued a reminder to the airline and tourism industry to transact in the local Myanmar currency and apply for a local money changer license.
— Myanmar Times

Vietnam becomes ninth largest trade partner of Myanmar
Trade between Vietnam and Myanmar reached 860 million USD in 2018, making Vietnam the 9th largest trade partner of Myanmar, it was reported at a meeting between Deputy Prime Minister Vuong Dinh Hue and Myanmar Minister of Planning and Finance Soe Win on June 18.
— VietnamPlus

Govt set to relax alcohol import ban, licensing rules
The Ministry of Commerce has drafted regulations that would allow the import of foreign alcohol, a senior official says, and in the process overturn a decades-old ban that has encouraged rampant smuggling.
— Frontier Myanmar

See here for more of today’s Myanmar morning news

Philippines morning news

Compiled by Stella-maris Ewudolu @stmarisewudolu

PhilHealth withdraws accreditation of WellMed Dialysis Center in QC
The Philippine Health Insurance Corporation on Tuesday, June 18, withdrew its accreditation of WellMed Dialysis Center.
— Eagle News

PNP: 6,600 dead in drug war
The government’s relentless campaign against illegal drugs has resulted in the death of 6,600 suspects, the arrest of 240,565 and the surrender of 1,283,409, according to the Philippine National Police (PNP).
— Tempo

Duterte’s ‘insulting remarks’ on PH boat sinking draw flak
Senators on Tuesday bewailed President Duterte’s playing down the sinking of a Philippine fishing boat after being hit by a Chinese trawler in the South China Sea as just a “little maritime incident.”
— Inquirer.net

See here for more of today’s Philippines morning news

Singapore morning news

Compiled by John Le Fevre @photo_journ

SP Telecom and Nokia team up to bring Singapore’s first 5G fixed network by 2020
Singapore is consistently one of the world’s best places to connect to the internet, and if all goes well, the experience will soon get even better.
— Business Insider

Singapore puts shoebox-size satellite into orbit to test next-gen cyber security technology
A nanosatellite, developed by a team of Singapore researchers looking for a breakthrough in cyber security and data encryption, has been put into orbit.
— The Straits Times (annoying popups)

Online users ridicule Heng Swee Keat’s comment on work-life balance for young couples
The Government will soon be introducing a series of dialogues to help find solutions for young parents to strike a balance between work and life.
— The Online Citizen

See here for more of today’s Singapore morning news

Thailand morning news

Compiled by John Le Fevre @photo_journ

DMCR sets up clean-up booms to cut marine waste
Thailand currently has more than seven million tons of waste that has not been properly disposed of and has become a source of marine waste.
— NNT

Private hospitals briefed on notification of drug prices, medical fees
The Department of Internal Trade today invited representatives of 353 private hospitals nationwide to a briefing on the public notification of the prices of drugs, medical supplies and medical services to patients are treated at hospitals.
— NNT

See here for more of today’s Thailand morning news

Vietnam morning news

Compiled by Sreypov Men @MenSreypov

Swine fever outbreak hits Vietnam’s farmers and food industry hard
Since last February, at least 2.47 million pigs have died. There is no vaccine or cure for the disease, which is not transmitted to humans.
— Asia News

Government urged to help grow private sector
Private Vietnamese firms have asked the Government to push administrative reform and build a favourable trade and investment climate to make Việt Nam one of the best places to do business in ASEAN and meet the standards of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
— Viet Nam News

Vietnam becomes one of hottest startup hubs in the world: IBTimes
Vietnam is becoming one of the hottest startup hubs not only in Asia but also in the world, according to the International Business Times (IBTimes), a world leading provider of business and financial news.
— NDO

See here for more of today’s Vietnam morning news

The Asean morning news roundup and its individual country morning news round-ups are the most comprehensive hand-curated selection of news reports from around the Asean Economic Community (AEC) published. We scour hundreds of local and international news and websites to find the things that you need to know to start your working week day.

We clearly identify the source of the story, whether it is behind a paywall, a media release, or whether the site uses annoying pop-up advertising or auto-play video, in case those things annoy you. It’s all then packaged up in an easy to read format enabling you to make an informed choice of whether you want to learn more by clicking directly through to the original source, or keep on reading the headlines. AEC News Today: Governance, not government; policies not politics.