ADB supports Philippines in ensuring food security

The project will help finance the delivery of monthly electronic food vouchers to 750,000 food-insecure households nationwide, the bank said.

Transporting rice in Manila, the Philippines. (Photo: AFP/VNA)
Transporting rice in Manila, the Philippines. (Photo: AFP/VNA)

Hanoi (VNA) - The Asian Development Bank (ADB) on August 13 approved a 400-million-USD-loan to help the Philippines reduce hunger, food insecurity, and poor nutrition amid escalating climate and disaster risks.

According to ADB, the funding will be carried out through the “Reducing Food Insecurity and Malnutrition with Electronic Food Vouchers" project. This is an important resource for the Philippine government to expand the "Zero Hunger" food stamp programme - a new social security initiative of the country.

The project will help finance the delivery of monthly electronic food vouchers to 750,000 food-insecure households nationwide, the bank said.

With nearly half the Philippine population unable to afford a healthy and nutritious diet, food vouchers are essential to help poor and vulnerable households meet their nutritional needs, said ADB Deputy Director General for Southeast Asia and concurrent Country Director for the Philippines Pavit Ramachandran./.

VNA

See more

Indonesia will not import rice for either consumption or industrial use next year. (Photo: tempo.co)

Indonesia to stop rice imports next year

Indonesia's rice production in 2025 is projected to reach 34.77 million tonnes, up 13.54% year on year, driven by favourable weather and farmer support policies under President Prabowo Subianto’s administration.

Distinctive festivals across Indonesia attract international visitors. (Photo published by VNA)

Indonesia identifies 15 priority tourism markets for 2025–2026

According to data compiled by the Ministry of Tourism, the number of tourists from Malaysia reached 2.18 million in the January-October 2025 period, showing a growth of 15.91% compared to last year. Meanwhile, the number of visitors from Singapore totaled 1.19 million this year, growing by 7.66% from 2024.

The 8th Cooperative Plan Meeting between the Ministry of Commerce of Thailand and the Ministry of Industry and Commerce of Lao PDR, December 17, Bangkok, Thailand (Photo: nationalthailan.com)

Thailand, Laos aim to boost bilateral trade

Laos is Thailand’s 7th largest trading partner in ASEAN and 18th globally. From January to October 2025, two-way trade grew by 18.65% to 8.18 billion USD, with Thai exports increasing by 16.90% to 4.81 billion USD and imports rising by 21.23% to 3.60 billion USD.

File photo of Visa and Mastercard credit cards. (Photo: AP)

Unpaid credit card balances in Singapore hit record high in 10 years

Experts attributed the worrying trend to factors like people not spending within their means, consumer culture emphasising prestige items, and easier access to credit like “buy now, pay later” services. Analysts said this can be a hint of growing financial pressures faced by Singaporeans amid rising prices.

Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof (Photo: Bernama)

Malaysia accelerates clean energy transition

Delivering a speech at the Clean Energy Transition Asia (CETA) Summit 2025 in Kuala Lumpur, Fadillah, who is also the energy transition and water transformation minister, said that the Southeast Asian region now drives more than half of the global energy demand.

Indonesian localities extend state of emergency amid natural disasters

Indonesian localities extend state of emergency amid natural disasters

As disaster-related losses continue to rise, authorities in the affected provinces have decided to extend the state of emergency to ensure resources and legal mechanisms for response efforts. West Sumatra extended it to December 22, North Sumatra to December 24, and Aceh to December 25.

Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof delivers his opening keynote address at the Global AI, Digital and Green Economy Summit 2025 in Kuala Lumpur, December 15, 2025. (Photo: Bernama)

Malaysia eyes AI-driven energy future

Malaysia’s direction is to focus on building a modern grid, a digital economy powered by trustworthy AI, and climate finance systems that deliver real-world decarbonisation.

Air passengers at the departure terminal of the Phnom Penh International Airport. (Photo: khmertimeskh.com)

Air travel between Cambodia, Thailand remains operational

In a statement released on his Facebook post, Hun Sen explained that his earlier message, advising the Royal Government to consider suspending cross-border travel, referred specifically to land routes, as tensions are escalating along the entire land border, with some spillover into maritime areas.