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BCEL-KT: Trade Summary (Dec 1, 2016)

Trade summary

Lao stock market marked was quiet day on the final day of the week, index closed up by 0.13 percent or 1.33 points to stay at 1,028.48 points because of rising from BCEL’s price, making 400 shares traded and worth about 2,040,000 kip. EDL-Gen had the small trading volume with 300 shares, traded unchanged price at 5,100 kip. On the other hand, BCEL moved up during the price 5,000 kip to 5,100 kip, which had trading volume of just 100 shares.  In the meantime, other stocks saw no matching, with LWPC closing at 5,400 kip, PTL at 2,500 kip and SVN at 3,000 kip.

Infant Immunisation against Polio Falling Short of Target in Meun District

Only 70 percent of children under the age of five in 22 target villages in Meun district, Vientiane province, have been immunised against polio and given protection against seasonal diseases.

The district health office had set a target for 98 percent of children under the age of five to be vaccinated against polio, with the vaccines made available in villages and at dispensaries. But some dispensaries were failing to administer the vaccines.

The number of children being immunised against polio may fall short of the target because children under the age of five did not always make use of the service, according to a district health official, Dr Seng Soixa.

Dr Seng spoke to the media recently about the progress made in the ongoing supplementary immunisation campaign, which aims to secure the gains made against polio through stronger immunisation of children under the age of five.

“We know that not all children under the age of five are being vaccinated as their parents don’t understand the importance of vaccination.”

Since the launch of the supplementary immunisation campaign to prevent outbreaks of disease in the district, health officials and village volunteers have been entrusted to collect information directly from villagers, he added.

The figures collected revealed that the vaccination rate for this age group was less than the figure recorded by the authorities.

The programme aims to immunise and protect all children in the one-to-five age group through oral polio vaccines.

Children in the district are being vaccinated to further boost their immunity against polio under the government’s policy to provide effective public health services.

“The number of children being vaccinated in this district has continued to decline as many parents living in remote areas of the country don’t make use of health services because they don’t understand their importance,” Dr Seng said.

Children under five years of age are at risk of polio infection due to the failure to inoculate the entire population, highlighting the vital importance of this round of vaccinations in fully eradicating the virus.

According to the WHO Laos office, the organisation will boost the Ministry of Health’s initiatives on the prevention of polio by focusing on children at risk in target provinces. If their plan succeeds, polio will be eradicated in Laos by 2017.

 

Source: Vientiane Times

Entrance Fees Taking Toll on Champassak Tour Operators

The imposition of entrance fees to tourist sites in Champassak province is causing a downturn in visitor numbers, according to local tour operators.

As a result, some operators have halted their services while others still running are complaining about the decline in visitor numbers, blaming the fees.

Entrance fees are currently being collected from local and foreign visitors at World Heritage-listed Vat Phou Champassak and at the Phasuam and Khonephapheng waterfalls.

A hotel operator in Champassak, who did not wish to be named, told Vientiane Times on Thursday that tour operators can still conduct tours but are shying away from the main attractions because of the entry fees.

“Some tour companies have suspended services because the lack of visitors is making their businesses unviable,” she said.

“This year we are encouraging visitors to go to Nheuan, Fan, Phasuam, Nong Luang, Champee Nang Sida, and Lakpaed waterfalls, along with Don Nong Luang waterfall, which are all beautiful spots that tourists can enjoy,” she added.

“Some tour operators have commented that it’s acceptable for tourist sites to collect fees, but visitors shouldn’t have to pay 50,000 kip at Vat Phou,” the hotel operator said.

To add to their woes local operators are finding the going tough because they can’t compete with the lower prices of tour packages.

Thai tourists like to visit Vat Phou and Khonephapheng Waterfall, whereas visitors from Europe and the US prefer Khong district and the waterfalls in Pakxong district.

According to the Management Office at the Vat Phou World Heritage Site, about 600,000 tourists visit Champassak, but only about 100,000 people make it to Vat Phou each year.

Deputy Director of the Management Office, Mr Amphol Sengphachanh, said it was possible that newly introduced road tolls on the road leading to the province from Thailand were having a negative impact on visitor numbers.

But an official from the provincial Department of Information, Culture and Tourism, Mrs Mala Chanthalam, said the sheer number of tourist sites now available was giving visitors more attractions to choose from.

Overall, the total number of foreign tourist arrivals in Laos increased from 2.7 million people in 2011 to 4.1 million last year.

 

Source: Vientiane Times

Suspected Drug Dealers Nabbed in Provinces

INTERNET OUT Undated Police handout photo of a handful of different types of Ecstasy. Two thousand drug dealers have been arrested during the first four months of a campaign by Scottish police forces, it was announced today August 13 2001. Police have also seized more than â14 million worth of drugs, including heroin, cocaine and Ecstasy, as part of the Know the Score campaign, which ends on August 31. Heroin accounted for almost â £9 million of the total amount of drugs recovered, while officers also seized â1 million worth of cocaine. Drug squad officers also found 142,000 Ecstasy tablets and 40 kilogrammes of amphetamines. See PA 0430 story SCOTLAND Drugs. PA Handout photo.

Police in the provinces of Bokeo and Luang Namtha have made significant arrests involving large quantities of illegal drugs, local media reported.

The Bokeo Drug Prevention and Control Department recently arrested a couple and confiscated 12kg of crystal methamphetamine and about 42,000 amphetamine pills in Namkerng village, Tonpheung district.

According to the Khuamsangob newspaper, police received a tipoff from a local resident regarding the transport of illegal drugs from Bokeo province to Vientiane.

Police used a vehicle inspection checkpoint in Namkerng village to stop and examine a bus and found the crystal methamphetamine and amphetamine pills in the couple’s bags.

The pair were named as Mr Maysengyod, 51, and Ms Fong, 48, of Huaypherng village, Tonpheung district.

They told police that a drug dealer, who they couldn’t name, hired them to take the drugs from Bokeo province to Vientiane for which they would be paid about 102,000 Thai baht.

Police are continuing their investigation into the case in hopes of identifying other people involved in the drug ring.

Meanwhile, in Luang Namtha province police arrested two men after finding 18,000 amphetamine pills concealed in a motorbike.

The men were named as Mr Korpa, 32, and Mr Kermue, 27, both of Poungxay village, Long district.

Police set up a road block in Sing district and stopped the motorbike, finding the stash inside.

Mr Korpa confessed to buying the pills from a man in Myanmar, with the intention of selling them. He paid Mr Kermue 500,000 kip to take him and the pills by motorbike to a Mr Yaso in Homxay village, Sing district.

Under amended Article 146 of the Criminal Law, for cases involving refined drugs as opposed to precursor chemicals, the penalties are the following:

For the possession, trading, sale or trafficking of between 0.3 and 100 grammes of synthetic drugs such as amphetamine, ecstasy, ice or crystal methamphetamine or other mind altering substances, the punishment shall be a prison sentence of 5-10 years. For between 100-500g of any such substances the punishment under the law is 10-20 years in jail plus financial penalties.

Under the law, anyone convicted of possessing over 500g of heroin can be handed the death penalty.

 

Source: Vientiane Times

Employees Enjoy Better Working Conditions, Rights

More than 400 state enterprises and private factories in Vientiane have signed on to collective bargaining agreements to protect the rights and benefits of both employees and employers.

Most people working at state enterprises are more satisfied with their working conditions than employees in factories, because some state enterprise workers earn a better income.

But both employees in state enterprises and privately-owned factories have seen their social welfare improve after many local businesses entered into collective bargaining agreements, which were initiated by the Lao Federation of Trade Unions and development partners in 2008.

This information was revealed last week at a meeting of the Lao Federation of Trade Unions and the National University of Laos, who have set up a joint cooperation programme. The meeting, which was chaired by the federation’s Vice President Mr Simoun Ounlasy, heard about the effects of collective bargaining agreement implementation.

Participants discussed the ways in which the collective bargaining agreements had helped to improve efforts to protect the rights and benefits of employees and employers.

The Collective Bargaining Agreement Implementation Committee presented a survey of the status changes of business units, employees and employers.

The survey showed that the status of business units had improved and that working conditions were safer in many cases, employees had better and stable jobs, and employees were earning a decent wage and enjoying social welfare benefits.

The average salary in some privately-owned factories is between 1-2 million kip per month and 2-5 million kip in some state enterprises in Vientiane.

It was also found that employees were paying more attention to their work, complying with workplace rules, sticking to working hours, showing more responsibility, and enjoying their work more.

Mostly people working at factories in Vientiane who were not normal residents of the capital came from Huaphan and Luang Prabang provinces, while most of those working at state enterprises who had migrated to Vientiane came from Vientiane province.

The status of employers had also changed for the better, as they had developed better relationships with employees, provided good advice, explained the situation when employees made a mistake, and gave larger bonuses on special occasions.

Some employers also provided facilities, housing and transport, and improved the workplace to provide more convenience for employees.

The Lao National Chamber of Commerce and Industry strongly believes that skill development, labour migration, education, and human resource development are important and benefit the country.

The Chamber advised that businesses should do more to develop labour skills, in addition to ploughing in more investment and creating more job opportunities for Lao people so that Laos can graduate from Least Developed Country status by 2020.

 

Source: Vientiane Times

Savannakhet Gears Up for That Inhang Festival

The annual That Inhang stupa festival in Kaysone Phomvihane district, Savannakhet province, is ready to go ahead from December 10-14, local authorities have confirmed.

Kaysone Phomvihane district Governor, Mr Bounyou Thammavong, told Vientiane Times on December 1  For this year’s festival we focused on local cultural activities in the hope they will interest visitors and make them want to come back again.

During the afternoon of the official opening ceremony day on December 12, attendees can enjoy a cultural performance with over 10 programmes. I hope they will teach all visitors more about the lifestyle here in Savannakhet province.

During the five-day festival, the organising committee will hold a trade fair which will mainly exhibit products from the province’s 15 districts. Meanwhile, the provincial authority will also present the One District, One Product (ODOP) logo to three districts, namely Kaysone Phomvihane, Songkhon and Atsaphon, so they will be known as ODOP districts, he added.

According to the festival schedule, on the afternoon of December 13 thousands of devotees will take part in a wax castle procession around the stupa and on the morning of December 14 there will be a tak baat (alms giving) ceremony. This is a traditional ritual that is a highlight of the annual festival, allowing people to pay homage to the revered stupa.

According to tourismlaos.org, That Inghang is a sacred stupa and reportedly the burial site of one of Buddha’s bones. It is an important place for Buddhists and is registered as a National Treasure of Laos. It was built about 450 years ago during the reign of King Marukhanakhone to commemorate the Buddha’s visit to the site.

Buddha is believed to have delivered a sermon to people at the site and later took a rest under the Hang tree. This is the reason why the stupa is called That Inghang.

The That Inghang festival takes place every December. The stupa is located in That village, Kaysone Phomvihane district. The easiest way to get there is to head out along Route 9 for about 12km and turn left at the police post, and then drive straight for about another 3km and you will come directly to the stupa.

Women are required to wear a traditional sinh (long Lao skirt) to enter the site. These are available next to the entrance. Normally, on days other than the festival, the gate is open daily from 8am to 6pm.

Savannakhet province is situated in central Laos and is the largest province with about 21,774 square kilometres, bordered by Vietnam to the east, Thailand to the west, Khammuan province to the north and Saravan province to the south. About 60 percent of the land is covered by forests.

 

Source: Vientiane Times

Round Table Meeting a Productive Forum for Exchange: Development Partners

The Round Table Implementation Meeting (RTIM) is an effective platform for productive exchanges between the government and development partners on the progress of their cooperation and enables participants to receive first-hand information on development issues.

This was the view expressed by a senior representative of Laos’ development partners about the recent RTIM, which took place in Vientiane provincial capital in a departure from the meeting’s normal venue in the Lao capital.

United Nations Development Programme Representative and United Nations Coordinator Ms Kaarina Immonen commented on the advantages of holding the meeting outside of Vientiane in a post-meeting press conference on Friday.

She said this year’s Round Table Implementation Meeting had impressed development partners through its relocation to Vientiane province. This enabled participants to visit development projects such as organic food farms, and vocational training and health facilities.

All of these projects are delivering so many positive results and continue to enforce the results, and have prospects for the future strategy and vision on how to take these forward, Ms Immonen said.

The meeting assessed the first year of the five-year National Socio-Economic Development Plan (NSEDP) for 2016-2020, and the challenges and prospects for the coming years.

Ms Immonen said the discussions at this year’s Round Table meeting were of high quality and the government had set a very open format for dialogue, which was appreciated by development partners.

The meeting was attended by members of the National Assembly, development partners, the private sector and civil society. The dialogue they engaged in was a full demonstration of more robust development partnership in operation and action, she added.

Ms Immonen said this kind of meeting was an important channel for the translation of the national agenda at the provincial level and other local levels.

The discussions and field visits were very helpful in making sure that responses were adjusted to local priorities and that there was participation in planning and implementation.

She pointed to the integration of planning and the global agenda into national strategy and the sub-national level as a concrete way that the government and development partners worked in partnership.

Another important aspect of effective cooperation was the provision of data for use in decision making.

We have to make sure that we are provided with data and that information is available about the development response, while boosting statistical information for making decisions, Ms Immonen said.

Attention should also be paid to gender equality and specific beneficiaries such as adolescents and girls. In this regard the availability of statistical information was of particular concern, especially in relation to nutrition, she added.

 

Source: Vientiane Times

New Funding Programme to Help Improve Ecosystems in Borikhamxay

The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) Laos Programme will work closely with the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry to protect and conserve the unique and important species, habitats, and ecosystems in Borikhamxay province.

An agreement on the Integrated Ecosystem and Wildlife Management Programme Phase 3 was signed on Wednesday by WCS Greater Mekong Region Director and Country Programme Director, Dr Christopher Holmes, and Director of the Borikhamxay provincial Agriculture and Forestry Department, Mr Khamphiou Phimmathath.

The five-year programme will run until 2020 through financial support of more than 16.9 billion kip (US$ 2,055,684) from the Theun-Hinboun Power Company, Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund, Cargill, Macarthur, European Union, AFD, and the United States Fish and Wildlife Service.

This agreement will build on more than 10 years of partnership through a programme of community engagement and livelihood development, and biodiversity and watershed management. Under the agreement, the programme will launch at the Nam Kading National Protected Area, Phou Si Thone Endangered Species Conservation Area, and Nam Gnouang South Protection Forest Area. The programme will help Borikhamxay to work in conservation forests and protection forests, with agreement to work in areas where other projects already exist, or are proposed based on discussion prior to the activity implementation.

The overall goal of the programme is to conserve and manage the forest resources and biodiversity within conservation forests, including protected areas and protection forests in support of efforts to improve local livelihoods sustainably.

The vision for Phase 3 of the programme is to continue to support the government to protect and manage the unique ecosystems within protected areas of the province so that they thrive indefinitely and are valued by the people of the Laos, and the world, for the biodiversity and services that they provide to both local communities and the nation.

Phase 3 contains components that build on Phases 1 and 2, which strengthened government capacity and supported the livelihoods of local communities.

The programme contributes to achieving government commitments under international conventions on biological diversity and on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora.

The programme also aligns and contributes to specific government strategies and plans, including the National Socio-Economic Development Plan until 2025 and Vision until 2030, Five Year National Socio-Economic Development Plan for 2016-2020, Forestry Strategy to the Year 2020, Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan 2010-2020 and other plans.

The Northern Annamite Mountains have the highest concentration of endemic species for a continental area in the world and are recognised globally for their biodiversity, ranked as one of the world’s 200 most important eco-regions.

This eco-region, which includes many forest areas in Borikhamxay, also supports some of Southeast Asia’s most charismatic species including Asian elephants, gibbons, and Annamite endemic species such as the Saola and Annamite striped rabbit, to name only a few.

In Borikhamxay province, the WCS Laos Programme works in partnership with the Lao government and local communities to conserve ecosystems and biodiversity.

 

Source: Vientiane Times