Authorities in Houaphanh Province discovered hazardous chemical substances in fruits sold at a market in Aed district on 13 March.
Laos Tackles Bureaucratic Bloat with Major Government Overhaul
As Laos continues to grow and change, the Lao People’s Revolutionary Party has recognized that its government structure isn’t keeping pace with the country’s fast development. In response, the Party has announced a major restructuring, focusing on both ministry and constitutional changes to improve the overall governance framework.
Despite previous efforts to improve efficiency, there are still many overlapping roles and unclear responsibilities, slowing down progress and preventing the government from operating at its full potential, according to a Resolution published on 12 March and signed by Party Central Committee General Secretary and Laos’ President Thongloun Sisoulith.
To tackle these challenges, the Party is gearing up for a major overhaul aimed at streamlining ministries, agencies, and the civil service to improve political stability, transparency, and efficiency.
This year’s resolution goes beyond ministry mergers and reshuffling, with anticipated constitutional amendments, although further details are yet to be revealed.
The goal is to align the government structure with the Party’s vision of a lean, efficient system that better manages resources and reduces bureaucracy.
Reducing Redundancies to Boost Efficiency
By 2024, the central government alone had 47 sectors, 456 departments, and over 2,200 divisions, leading to confusion over who does what and slowing down decision-making, the notice stated.
This lack of clarity is causing a lot of inefficiency, according to the March Resolution. It’s affecting everything from business operations to government services.
The civil service is also too big, the document suggests, with over 168,000 civil servants–about 2.18 percent of the population.
This is putting a huge strain on the national budget, with government salaries alone eating up nearly 40 percent of the annual revenue.
This data shows that the government is spending a lot but not getting enough in return, leading to a growing budget deficit, as confirmed by the document signed by President Thongloun.
With so many people in the public sector, job roles are unclear, and some civil servants end up doing multiple jobs at once, for instance working as taxi drivers overnight to support their families.
This, combined with low wages that haven’t kept up with the country’s growth, has led to frustration and low morale among workers. Currently the minimum salary in Laos is LAK 2,500,000 (approximately USD 117). Despite its recent increase from the previous LAK 1.6 million (about USD 75), the amount remains generally inadequate to address the national challenge of labor shortages and increasing school dropout rates.
To fix this, the Central Committee has decided it’s time to make some major changes.
They want to streamline the government even more, merge similar departments, cut out unnecessary layers, and make everything work more smoothly.
The goal is to improve leadership, make the budget go further, and create a fairer, more effective salary system.
In the end, the Party hopes this restructuring will lead to a government that’s more responsive, transparent, and capable of handling the challenges that come with a growing economy and a fast-paced regional development.
Streamlining Ministries and Civil Service to Cut Redundancies
According to the latest notice, as part of the overhaul, personnel will be reassigned based on specific needs, with a focus on promoting skilled individuals for the broader national benefit.
The restructuring process will also focus on eliminating redundancies, enhancing organizational flexibility, and ensuring a clearer delegation of roles and responsibilities, all in an effort to create a more streamlined and effective governance structure.
Among the expected key changes are amendments to the constitution and relevant laws, which will be implemented to establish a clear framework for the overhaul.
In this major government overhaul, several ministries in Laos will merge to improve efficiency. The Ministry of Planning and Investment will combine with the Ministry of Finance, and the Ministry of Energy and Mines will join the Ministry of Industry and Commerce. The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment will merge with the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry to form the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment.
Other changes include transferring civil servant management from the Ministry of Home Affairs to the Party Personnel Board and moving administrative functions like mapping and religious affairs to the Prime Minister’s Office. The Ministry of Information, Culture, and Tourism will also shift its media responsibilities to the Party Propaganda and Training Board and become the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.
The restructuring aims to create a more efficient, professional, and accountable government that can deliver better services for the people.
The changes will be done in stages, with central-level reforms expected by May 2025 and local-level changes by July 2025.
According to the announcement, the goal is to make the government leaner, more effective, and better suited to the country’s growing needs.
Previous Restructurings: Ongoing Efforts to Improve Government Efficiency
The restructuring of the Lao government before the March 2025 changes occurred in 2020. This was part of an ongoing effort to improve efficiency and effectiveness in governance, driven by the 10th Party Congress in 2020.
During that time, the government undertook major reforms to streamline administrative bodies, reduce redundancies, and improve the overall functioning of ministries and local administrations.
The reforms were aimed at better addressing the country’s economic and social challenges, as well as improving the public service sector.
Since the 5th Party Congress in 1991, there have been calls to streamline and simplify the government. However, while there have been some steps to merge ministries and organizations, the changes haven’t been enough to make the system as lean and effective as needed.
Lao, Chinese Foreign Ministers Discuss Closer Ties, Economic Cooperation

Lao Minister of Foreign Affairs Thongsavanh Phomvihane met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Beijing on 14 March during his official visit to China from 12 to 15 March. Both sides reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening ties and advancing the Laos-China community with a shared future.
Calling Global Startups! EPIC 2025 Opens Application with US$100M Investment Up for Grabs

HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach Newswire – 14 March 2025 – Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation (HKSTP) is excited to announce the 9th edition of the Elevator Pitch International Competition (EPIC 2025), a global stage for visionary startups to secure investment, spur business opportunities, and scale in Asia’s innovation arena from 3-7 November, as finalists showcase their groundbreaking ideas with a 60-second pitch at Kai Tak Cruise Terminal in Hong Kong.

EPIC 2025 will be offering winning teams two tech track additions welcoming solutions in Digital Health Tech and Green Tech, other than FinTech, and access to a targeted investment pool of USD 100 million—double the amount from last year—along with a USD 240,000 cash prize. Global registration for EPIC 2025 is now open until 17 June 2025, 23:59 (GMT +8), ready to take tech ventures to the next level.
Key Dates
Application Deadline: 17 June 2025, 23:59 (GMT +8)
Online Regional Pitch: July 2025
**Mid- to late-stage startups under 10 years old, focused on Digital Health Tech, FinTech, or GreenTech, and registered as businesses with plans to expand R&D or operations to Hong Kong and/or the Greater Bay Area (GBA), are eligible for EPIC.
Albert Wong, CEO of HKSTP, expresses pride in EPIC’s success, “Hong Kong is at the forefront of global innovation, where we engage entrepreneurs in addressing the imperative, and EPIC being the origin of many world-first technologies, HKSTP will continue offering haven for startup resources to intersect, and invites like-minded partners to join us on the transformative journey.”
Stepping up from EPIC 2024 with 603 entries from 47 economies, the competition this year aims to set its sights even higher. Startups will participate in online regional pitch across North America, Europe and the Asia-Pacific (APAC) in July, and finalists will land in Hong Kong in November, where EPIC Week and the Grand Finale take place, as a more comprehensive and enriching experience is set to introduce highlights including:
- EPIC Week: A week-long series of events leading up to the Grand Finale, including business and investment matching, networking sessions, and industry tours, providing startups with deeper insights into Hong Kong’s vibrant I&T ecosystem.
- Tech Spotlight: An exclusive opportunity for selected startups to present their solutions directly to investors and corporate leaders, facilitating immediate feedback and potential collaborations.
- GBA Exploration: Guided visits and sessions focused on unlocking business opportunities within the GBA, enabling startups to understand and tap into this rapidly growing market.
Visit the official website for more on EPIC 2025 at https://epic.hkstp.org/.
Hashtag: #HKSTP #EPIC2025
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation
More information about HKSTP is available at www.hkstp.org.
British Council East Asia Education Week 2025 Strengthening UK-East Asia higher education partnerships
UK Vice-Chancellors, UK alumni and East Asia leaders convene in Hong Kong to shape the future of mobility, research, and innovation partnerships.
HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach Newswire – 14 March 2025 – The British Council Hong Kong successfully hosted the British Council East Asia Education Week 2025 from 5 to 7 March 2025, bringing together senior higher education leaders from the UK and East Asia to explore new opportunities for collaboration, research, and innovation, as well as UK alumni from 12 countries and territories in the region to discuss future of international studies and work. The three-day event saw the participation of education agents, UK alumni, UK Vice-Chancellors, alongside policymakers and academic leaders from East Asia, in a series of strategic roundtables, discussions, and site visits aimed at strengthening partnerships and knowledge exchange between the UK and East Asia.

Leighton Ernsberger, Director Education, East Asia, British Council, commented, “The British Council works closely with UK and East Asia stakeholders to strengthen international higher education partnerships. Building on the success of last year’s inaugural event in Malaysia, this year’s discussions in Hong Kong not only showcased the best of UK-East Asia collaborations but also inspired the next wave of global research initiatives, transnational education, and student mobility opportunities.
“Hong Kong is a natural home for the event in East Asia. In terms of research, UK researchers rank third most common among internationally co-authored publications in Hong Kong. Hong Kong is also home to over 72,000 alumni of UK universities in the past 15 years and in 2022/23 there where over 19,000 enrolments on UK transnational education programmes, making Hong Kong, on its own, the fourth largest partner for teaching and learning in the region with the UK. This illustrates the depth and strategic nature of partnerships between Hong Kong and the UK.”
Susannah Morley, Director of British Council Hong Kong, added, “We were delighted to host the British Council East Asia Education Week in Hong Kong, where delegates from across the region engaged in critical conversations on the future of higher education and global collaboration. The participation of Vice-Chancellors from the UK on an outward mission to Hong Kong has reinvigorated partnerships and fostered new opportunities in education, research, and knowledge exchange.
“This mission focused on three priority areas – arts and culture, allied health and big data, and innovation and knowledge transfer. By strengthening connections between universities in the UK and Hong Kong, we aim to create a platform for sustainable collaboration that not only benefits both Hong Kong SAR and the UK but also contributes to the broader Greater Bay Area’s (GBA) education and innovation ecosystem.”
Key discussions shaping the future of UK-East Asia partnerships
The event featured a UK Vice-Chancellors’ Higher Education Mission, where UK university leaders engaged with East Asia’s higher education sector through site visits, strategic briefings, and discussions on research collaboration, innovation, and funding opportunities.
The East Asia Agent Conference 2025 brought together almost 200 senior directors of education agencies, universities, and aggregators from 13 countries and territories and the UK under the theme “Innovate for a Sustainable Future.” The conference focused on improving the quality of advice available to students, the value of UK qualifications and the student voice, concluding with a networking reception, fostering new connections between UK government representatives and academic leaders.
The East Asia Agent Conference reaffirmed the UK’s commitment to high-quality student support and ethical recruitment. The panel discussions throughout the day highlighted the Agent Quality Framework (AQF), a framework designed to strengthen the partnership between the UK education sector and agents and counsellors, while recognising and sharing best practices. The conference also recognised the importance of alumni engagement, employability-driven strategies, and the need for innovation in agency services to navigate market challenges and strengthen the UK’s position as a top study destination.
Alumni UK: A global network for graduates
Another key component of the East Asia Education Week was the Alumni UK Symposium, which brought together over 200 UK alumni from 12 countries and territories in East Asia to exchange insights and strengthen professional networks. The Alumni Symposium highlighted the impact of a UK education on career success, emphasising adaptability, resilience, and an entrepreneurial mindset. A series of panel discussions among alumni also underscored the power of alumni networks, the need for lifelong learning, and the importance of leveraging global connections to navigate evolving job markets and drive positive societal change. The event also provided the opportunity to celebrate 33 alumni of the British Council’s Women in STEM scholarship from across Southeast Asia and the new British Council Scholarship for Women in Hong Kong, launched in 2024 and supported by the Sir Tang Shiu Kin Education Trust ahead of International Women’s Day. The first cohort of four students from Hong Kong are currently in the UK studying at Newcastle universities.
Connecting UK alumni from around the world, the British Council Alumni UK platform creates a global network designed to connect graduates of UK universities with their peers worldwide and provides professional development and job opportunities to support career progression.
The event was supported by several partners: the University of Hong Kong provided an amazing backdrop to the event, Pearson PTE as Gold partners for the week, Easy Transfer as the reception sponsor, British Council IELTS, Grok Global Services and Oxford International Education Group as event partners. Several UK partners were at the heart of event as well, UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), UK Universities International (UUKI), British University International Liaison Association (BUILA) and UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI), reflecting the strategic importance of Hong Kong to the UK.
To learn more about Alumni UK, visit: https://alumniuk.britishcouncil.org/.
For more details on the British Council East Asia Education Week, please visit: https://www.britishcouncil.hk/en/programmes/education/british-council-east-asia-education-week-2025
Hashtag: #BritishCouncil
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
Finexcellent Ramadan: Trade, Learn, and Give Back

JAKARTA, INDONESIA – Media OutReach Newswire – 14 March 2025 – Finex, an acclaimed Indonesian broker, has launched a 2025 Ramadan promotion. Titled Finexcellent Ramadan, the promo takes Finex traders on a month-long journey of trading excellence and self-improvement.

5 benefits of trading
To celebrate the glorious month of Ramadan, Finex has prepared a special treat for all Muslim Finexers — the Finexcellent Ramadan promo.
The promotion is a month-long event that offers participants the 5 benefits of trading with Finex: gifts for lots traded, weekly compensation for trading expenses, education, a welcome gift for first-time Finex traders, and charity.
The benefits are designed to be both material and spiritual rewards, as trading during Ramadan is not about enjoying one’s trading achievements but about shaping a better version of oneself, coming together, and making the world a better place.
Trading is 100% swap-free, so all Finexers can be sure of receiving first-class trading services aligned with the values of Muslim ethics.
The month of benefit – the month of virtue
One of the key elements of Finexcellent Ramadan is charity. During the promotion, all trades executed will allow Finex to donate a portion of its proceeds to charity. The mutual financial benefit will be used for a good cause, fulfilling the Ramadan spirit of virtue.
Be Finexcellent!
Another highlight of the Finexcellent Ramadan promo is the Finexcellent Marathon, a four—day trading event dedicated to education and refining trading skills.
Finexers are invited to join the Marathon and immerse themselves in insightful content from Finex, accompanying a series of live trading sessions from one of Indonesia’s world-class technical traders, Andre Rizky.
The intensive course on education and trader work ethic will inspire traders with the first-hand experience of a professional trader. It will also demonstrate the importance of trading psychology and improved self-awareness as necessary elements of trading excellence.
Disclaimer:
Derivative transactions involve high risks and high returns.
Hashtag: #Finex #trading #CSR #Ramadan #Charity
https://finex.co.id/
https://www.facebook.com/finexbroker
https://www.instagram.com/finex_forex
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
About Finex
Finex is a regulated Forex broker based in Jakarta, Indonesia. Finex provides competitive conditions for trading Forex currencies, commodities, and indices. Established in 2012, Finex is supervised by BAPPEBTI (Commodity Futures Trading Supervisory Agency), an Indonesian regulator, which ensures the protection of traders’ funds by the Government of the Republic of Indonesia.
Trend Micro Ranked #1 Channel Champion by Canalys
Recognized for “go-to-market innovation and consistent partner engagement”
HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach Newswire – 14 March 2025 – Cybersecurity giant Trend Micro Incorporated (TYO: 4704; TSE: 4704) has been named a Champion in the Canalys Global Cybersecurity Leadership Matrix 2025. This marks Trend’s third consecutive placement as #1 among the 32 cybersecurity vendors appraised by Canalys. Trend and its partners serve the industry’s most geographically diverse customer base, protecting hundreds of thousands of enterprise customers across 69 countries.
To learn more about Trend’s channel partner program, visit: https://www.trendmicro.com/en_hk/partners/channel-partners.html
Trend launched its Global Partner Program in 2024, delivering consistent and tailored engagement to all regions and partner types. AI capabilities, partner competencies, immersive training, customized playbooks and lead-generation tools were all recognized by Canalys.
According to Canalys’s review of Trend’s channel program: “Partner ecosystem expansion will be a key focus in 2025, with an emphasis on new AI-focused partners in collaboration with NVIDIA and partners in defense, energy, healthcare and FSI sectors. Priorities will include growing its security services specialist ecosystem and driving sustained partner momentum via cloud marketplaces. The launch of an AI-predicted opportunity campaign will boost up- and cross-sell opportunities, while the new Technical Partner Center will help partners optimize pre- and post-sales.”
To be ranked as a Champion in the Canalys Global Cybersecurity Leadership Matrix, security vendors must have the highest levels of excellence in channel management, high and consistent vendor benchmark scores, among the largest share of global shipments and strong market performance, vision, leadership and change capabilities.
Kevin Simzer, COO at Trend: “Our deep focus on empowering our channel partners and end customers through AI-driven proactive cybersecurity continues to resonate in the industry. We’re proud to be recognized by Canalys for our channel innovation, scaling, diversity of partner types, and quality of service. We’re building on this success throughout 2025 with continued expansion of our channel capabilities.”
Canalys measures partner sentiment by leveraging their Vendor Benchmark Analyzer, a tool that collates channel partners’ experiences of working with vendors to provide scores which allow easy cross comparison. Trend lead the evaluation with a leadership score of 82% and a momentum score of 74%.
Hashtag: #trendmicro #trendvisionone #visionone #cybersecurity
https://www.trendmicro.com
https://www.linkedin.com/in/trend-micro-hong-kong-96353768/
https://twitter.com/trendmicroamea
https://www.facebook.com/tmhk1989/
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
Trend Micro
Trend Micro, a global cybersecurity leader, helps make the world safe for exchanging digital information. Fueled by decades of security expertise, global threat research, and continuous innovation, Trend Micro’s cybersecurity platform protects hundreds of thousands of organizations and millions of individuals across clouds, networks, devices, and endpoints. As a leader in cloud and enterprise cybersecurity, the platform delivers a powerful range of advanced threat defense techniques optimized for environments like AWS, Microsoft, and Google, and central visibility for better, faster detection and response. With 7,000 employees across 65 countries, Trend Micro enables organizations to simplify and secure their connected world. www.TrendMicro.com
Prudence Foundation launches 2025 Disaster Tech Awards and partnership with AVPN
Awards and partnership to drive innovation and investment in climate and health resilience
HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach Newswire – 14 March 2025 – Prudence Foundation, the community investment arm of Prudential plc, announces the return of the SAFE STEPS Disaster Tech (D-Tech) Awards for its fourth edition in 2025. The awards bring together innovators from around the globe to showcase their technology solutions and innovations that enhance disaster resilience.
This initiative aligns with Prudence Foundation’s focus area to build community resilience against disasters exacerbated by climate change and its impacts on health. The finals will take place on 11 June, 2025, featuring two solution tracks: “Climate & Health” and “Smart Resilience”. The competition offers over US$150,000 in cash prizes and in-kind contributions from strategic partners, live pitch opportunities at Echelon Singapore 2025, and Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud technology support. The 2025 D-Tech Awards are supported by the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR), the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), Amazon Web Services, E27, and AVPN.
Applications are now OPEN for entries until 21 March, 2025. Details of the application criteria, timeline and other relevant information can be found here.
Mobilising Adaptation Investments Project
In the COP29 Special Report on Climate Change and Health[1] published by the World Health Organization (WHO), Climate Change is the biggest threat to human health. UNEP’s Adaptation Gap Report 2023[2] states that current flow of climate adaptation finance to developing countries falls short by 10-18 times, and calls for scaled up funding for climate and health solutions. To address funding gaps in global climate technology, Prudence Foundation is partnering with AVPN to unlock financing support for market-ready solutions that are prepared to scale. This 18-month project includes developing a knowledge product to guide investors, providing capacity-building support to innovators, and fostering investment flow into climate and health adaptation solutions.
Nicole Ngeow, Executive Director of Prudence Foundation, said, “At Prudence Foundation, we believe technological innovation has a significant role to play in improving disaster preparedness, recovery and resilience. With climate change resulting in more frequent and intense disasters across the world, the need to build resilience and support solutions that mitigate or respond to disasters has never been greater. Through the D-Tech Awards and in partnership with AVPN, we aim to create a supportive ecosystem to help innovative solutions to scale and enhance community resilience in the face of increasing risks exacerbated by climate change”.
“The intersection of climate change and health demands urgent, collaborative action. AVPN’s partnership with Prudence Foundation, through the 2025 D-Tech Awards, is a powerful step towards building a robust ecosystem for climate and health innovation. By mobilising our network of social investors and leveraging our expertise in impact-driven capital, we will accelerate the development and scaling of solutions that protect vulnerable communities and build lasting resilience across Asia, “said Madhavika Bajoria, Executive Director, Health Impact at AVPN.
Hashtag: #Prudential
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
About Prudence Foundation
Resilient Communities, Today and Tomorrow
Established in 2011 in Hong Kong, Prudence Foundation is the community investment and philanthropic arm of Prudential plc. The Foundation builds Financial Wellbeing, and Climate and Health Resilience for underserved Asian and African communities. We are committed to sustainable, long-term solutions that empower individuals and communities to make informed financial decisions, access affordable financial products, as well as be more prepared and protected against climate related health risks. We actively engage in public-private partnerships, collaborate with governments, NGOs, communities, and other private sector entities to build collective efforts for lasting change. To date, our programmes are implemented across 16 markets in Asia and Africa, reaching millions of people.
For more information: www.prudencefoundation.com
About SAFE STEPS D-Tech
SAFE STEPS D-Tech aims to find, fund, and support innovative technology solutions that enhance disaster resilience. The programme focuses on addressing real-world challenges before, during, and after natural disasters by promoting advancements in Climate & Health and Smart Resilience. Through partnerships with the United Nations Office of Disaster Risk Reduction, International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), Amazon Web Services, and E27, the initiative offers grants, mentorship, and global recognition to innovators, helping to strengthen community resilience and save lives.
For more information: www.safestepsdtech.com
About AVPN
AVPN is the largest network of social investors in Asia, comprising over 600 funders and resource providers across 33 markets. Our mission is to increase the flow and effectiveness of financial, human, and intellectual capital in Asia by enabling members to channel resources towards impact. As an ecosystem builder, AVPN enables its members to connect, learn, act, and lead across key pillars and improve the effectiveness of deployed capital, bringing local field needs, regional expertise, and policy insights to the forefront.
For more information about AVPN and our work, please visit our website and read our latest
Annual Review 2023/24.