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Photo by Dennis Sylvester Hurd via Flickr (CC BY 2.0)

Cambodia and Lao PDR Report Continuous Drop in COVID-19 Cases in April Amid Festivities

Cambodia and the Lao People’s Democratic Republic have reported a steady drop in average COVID-19 cases per day in April 2022, according to a report on “Vaccination Rates, Effectiveness, and Safety” by the Asian Development Bank (ADB). In Cambodia, the average COVID-19 cases per day dropped from 164 to 18.4, and deaths decreased from 1 to 0.06, marking a fall in case fatality rate from 0.43% to 0.35%. In Lao PDR, daily infection rates declined steadily, averaging at 986 for April 2022 from 1102 in March 2022, while average deaths per day plateaued between 1 to 3.

Photo by Kaj17 via Flickr. (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

Guangxi Opens Ports for Cross-border Trade

The Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region (GZAR) of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) has opened seven highway ports and one railway port for cross-border cargo with normalized customs clearance processes. Statistics from the GZAR’s Department of Commerce reported that 3,344 vehicles entered and exited through Guangxi’s border highway ports during the May Day holiday in 2022. The May Day holiday is one of the peak travel times in the country.   

The Friendship bridge built with Australian funding and completed and opened in 1994, crossing the Mekong River and connecting Thailand to Laos. Photo by Jim Holmes / AusAID via Flickr. (CC BY 2.0)

Fifth Lao-Thai Friendship Bridge to Provide Shortest Route between Lao PDR, Thailand, and Viet Nam

The fifth friendship bridge between the Lao People‘s Democratic Republic (Lao PDR) and Thailand is set to further enhance Lao PDR’s connectivity with its neighbors in the Greater Mekong Subregion. It will link Borikhamxay province (Lao PDR) to Bueng Kan province (Thailand), becoming a vital road link between Laos, Thailand and Vietnam. Spanning over 150km, it promises to be the shortest connecting link between the three countries and opens another regional trade and transit route. 

Fisherwoman in Stung Sangke river, Battambang province. Photo by Eric Sales/ADB. 

Proposed ADB Project to Help Boost Cambodia’s Fisheries and Tourism Sectors

A proposed Asian Development Bank (ADB) project will help finance two standard ports that will boost the fisheries and tourism sectors of Cambodia’s Kep province.  

A report by the Khmer Times shared provincial officials and ADB are working to establish the ports’ locations, according to Mr. Vao Sokha, Kep Deputy Governor.  

Night scene in downtown Ho Chi Minh City, Viet Nam. Taken in 2019. Photo by Gerhard Joren/ADB.

Cambodia, Lao PDR, and Viet Nam Consider Plans to Revitalize Tourism

Cambodia, Lao PDR, and Viet Nam (CLV) are looking to revitalize tourism in the CLV subregion, and held a meeting on 4 May to discuss implementing the Tourism Development Plan for the Development Triangle Region (2020-2025) and Vision 2030. The working group plans to promote tourism in the triangle region through exhibitions, videos, logos and brands, with a focus on digital advertising. 

The ASEAN universal verification mechanism will use digital technology and ensure data privacy protection and security. Photo credit: Asian Development Bank.

ASEAN to Develop One System for Verifying Vaccinated Travelers

Health ministers of Southeast Asia have agreed to work toward mutual recognition of COVID-19 vaccination certificates to facilitate travel across the region as countries reopen their borders. This will involve putting in place an ASEAN universal verification mechanism that uses digital technology while ensuring data privacy protection and security.

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