A memorandum of understanding was signed in Vientiane this week between the director-general of the Laotian Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry’s Department of Agricultural Land Management, Khamphone Rasachack, and the president and managing director of the French Agricultural Research Centre for International Development (Cirad), Michel Eddi.

The ceremony was attended by Laotian Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Forestry Bounkhouang Khambounheuang and French Ambassador Claudine Ledoux along with ministry officials and Cirad representatives.

The project is aimed at promoting agro-ecological principles and practice in the Greater MekongSubregion countries of Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar and Vietnam.

It is expected to provide institutional and operational backstopping to the Conservation Agriculture Network for Southeast Asia (CANSEA) while enlarging its scope to cover the whole field of agro-ecology, with conservation agriculture being one component of the diversity of practices found under the term agro-ecology, Khamphone said.

The project will also assist the actors of agro-ecology in the region to increase their visibility and impacts along the value chain including farmers, research and development agencies, companies, donors and policymakers.

The degradation of agricultural resources is a major concern, in particular soils, he said. To address this issue, scientific collaboration on agro-ecology needs to be carried out to address the problems with the most accurate and environmentally friendly solutions.

“Therefore, this agreement could serve as a solid basis for our fine continuing cooperation,” he said.

Of the 2.7 million euros committed, 2.5 million euros will be provided by Rural Development and Agriculture and 200,000 euros by Cirad, according to the project’s specific MoU.

Nearly 14 per cent of the cost components directly under its responsibility are distributed at a ratio of 1.2 million euros for the Agro-ecology Learning alliance in Southeast Asia component, Professionals for Fair Development and 1.5 million euros for the Coordination and CANSEA component.

This estimate is of the direct costs arising from implementing the project and does not take into account the travel and other expenses of all participants other than the members steering and managing the project.

A major part of this project will be in the contractual area involving payments to service providers, operators and partners under grants.

The project does not intend to provide compensation for work involved in establishing certain aspects of the network and this may result in significant expenditure for all participating institutions.

Cirad also participates through providing expertise and taking responsibility for some logistical aspects through Cirad funds for the CANSEA network.

In a meeting with the central city’s people committee, the company’s general manager, Moritz Sticher said Da Nang was seen as a potential city in Vietnam with development of renewable energy in the future.

Moritz said the plant is designed with a capacity of 40 megawatt (MW), and the study and survey would start later this July.

He said the company will cover construction and technology transfer for the city.

Vice Chairman of the city’s People’s Committee, Tran Van Mien said the city always ensures top priority for high-tech and clean technology investment projects as Da Nang plans to build as a ‘green’ city by 2025.

According to a report from the city’s Industry and Trade department, around 30 per cent of the city’s population is using solar power for heaters, while five-star hotels and resorts have been using the solar power heater system as a saving and as an environment-friendly solution.

The first solar power system of Da Nang was built in FPT Complex project — the Information Technology (IT) Service Centre of Vietnam software giant, FPT Corporation in 2014. The system supplies 12kWh each day and a solar-power heater system with a capacity of 1,500 litres.

Da Nang is seen as the first city in Vietnam to promote clean energy solutions for residential use as the city has been developed as a tourist attraction with green and high-tech industries.

In 2014, the city’s Science and Technology department began a one-year pilot project of installation solar power system for deep-sea fishing vessels.

Last year, Vietnam’s first solar power with 19.2MW capacity project was built in the central province of Quang Ngai.

The company said this is the largest investment by foreign investors in a series A round – financing a startup in the growth stage – in a Vietnamese online startup.

The funding comes less than six months since the website http://www.vntrip.vn was launched, it added.

The website provides Vietnamese consumers a localised platform to make international hotel bookings by tying up with global leaders like Booking.com and YieldPlanet.

It connects to 6,000 hotels in Vietnam and 900,000 in the world.

FengHe Group is led by John Wu who began his career in Silicon Valley in the late 1980’s and most notably was an angel investor and CTO (Chief Technology Officer) of Alibaba.

Scott Hancock has more than 20 years private-equity and early stage investing experience while holding senior positions at Oak Hill Capital, Continuity Capital Partners and Deep Sky Capital.

Both will have board seats to provide guidance and oversight to vntrip.vn’s strategy and growth.

The investors said they saw potential in company before deciding to invest.

Scott Hancock said: “It is exciting to be an early­stage investor in vntrip.vn because we can see the opportunity to build the dominant market leader in an industry that will reach nearly $1 billion in revenue within the next 5 years.”

Le Dac Lam, co-founder and CEO of vntrip.vn, said “We are extremely pleased to have two renowned firms with proven track records in the technology sector investing in our company and supporting our vision and strategy going forward.”

Local­to­local online bookings are estimated to reach US$750 million in revenues by 2020.

After the funding, vntrip.vn is valued at VND300 billion ($13.6 million) by investors.

WHILE the Philippines celebrated a victory awarded via the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in its dispute with China over controversial claims in the South China Sea, Beijing has firmly rejected the verdict.

China did not accept any third party trying to impose a settlement or any solution forced on it, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said in a statement issued yesterday after the ruling, technically described as an ‘award’, by the arbitral tribunal on the unilaterally-initiated case on the South China Sea.

China solemnly declared that the award was null and void and had no binding force. China neither accepted nor recognised it.

“China’s territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests in the South China Sea shall under no circumstances be affected by those awards. China opposes and will never accept any claim or action based on those awards,” it said.

The Philippines filed 15 submissions to the PCA over the past three years asking the court to rule on whether China’s ‘nine-dash line’ claim of most of the sea, as well as its construction of artificial islands near the Spratlys, violated the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea – Unclos.

China refused to take part in the case, saying it involved a determination of ownership in the South China Sea – tantamount to a ruling on sovereignty – which falls under the purview of the International Court of Justice.

The tribunal concluded there was no legal basis for China to claim historic rights to resources in areas falling within the ‘nine-dash line’.

The five-member tribunal also denied that any of the Spratly Islands grant China an exclusive economic zone.

“The Philippines welcomed the issuance of the award by the Arbitral Tribunal constituted by the PCA under Annex 7 of the 1982 Unclos, on the arbitration proceedings initiated by the Philippines,” Foreign Affairs Secretary Perfecto Yasay said yesterday after the court verdict.

“Our experts are studying the award with the care and thoroughness that this significant arbitral outcome deserves,” he said. “In the meantime, we call on those concerned to exercise restraint and sobriety,” Yasay said in response to the controversial case.

“The Philippines strongly affirms its respect for this milestone decision as an important contribution to ongoing efforts in addressing disputes in the South China Sea,” The Philippines Daily Inquirer quoted Yasay as saying.

“The Philippines reiterates its abiding commitment to efforts of pursuing the peaceful resolution and management of disputes with the view of promoting and enhancing peace and stability in the region,” he said.

China is at loggerheads with many members of Asean in addition to the Philippines over territorial disputes in the South China Sea, including Brunei, Malaysia and Vietnam.

The issue has been a worry for the regional grouping for a long time and non-claimants including Indonesia, Singapore and Thailand sent observers to monitor the proceedings.

Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha said Thailand was looking at the case in the context ofAsean reaching a “cooperative and trustworthy” resolution. Thailand would not push for a consensus during the upcoming Asean ministerial meeting in Laos from July 21 to 26, Prayut said.

A few hours before the judgement was delivered yesterday, Thailand’s Foreign Ministry urged that the South China Sea conflict should be addressed jointly based on good relations and mutual benefit.

“The situation in the South China Sea should be addressed through concerted efforts and by every means, on the basis of mutual trust and confidence as well as equitable benefit, to reflect the nature of the long standing Asean-China relations,” the ministry said.

The statement said full and effective implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea should be emphasised.

“And the need for all parties concerned to work expeditiously for an early conclusion of the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea is of paramount importance to allow us to emerge stronger together,” it said.

The mixed-use project will be jointly developed with US real estate developer Urban Commons in a 50:50 joint venture, Chiwayland announced yesterday.

It added that the move comes at a time when the US residential property market is “gaining traction coupled with supply shortage”.

Chiwayland country director Zhang Gaowei said: “We are entering the US property market with an attractive project, amid positive signs of the market coming off a low base. The development is located in a key hub of LA, also one of the largest and most vibrant urban centres of the US.”

Citing data from the Association of Foreign Investors in Real Estate, the company said that average home prices in Los Angeles had climbed 10 per cent over the last year to US$548 per square foot, and are expected to rise further this year.

It plans to develop 60 residential units and a 250-room hotel on the site in Mid-Wilshire, the city’s most densely populated area due to its 24-hour entertainment scene and cultural diversity, it added.The project, due to be completed in 2019, is a 10-minute drive from the central business district of Los Angeles, and south of Hollywood.

Chiwayland said the hotel – to be flagged with a brand under Marriott or Starwood – would be part of the company’s property investment portfolio to offer recurring income.

“Based on prevailing market rates of similar hotels around the vicinity, average room rates start at US$249 per night, with an average occupancy rate of 75.8 per cent as compared with the national average of 65.6 per cent,” the firm noted.

The development site – now occupied by a post office and carpark – has a plot ratio of three, and Chiwayland intends to have it bumped up to six, with a total gross floor area (GFA) of 207,132 sq ft. It said 40 per cent of the total GFA will be allocated to its residential component.

The firm is confident that its request to increase the plot ratio will receive approval within the next 12 months, citing other approvals awarded on several plots nearby.

Chiwayland executive chairman and chief executive Qian Jianrong said the US property market is “mature and stable, and undergirded with a strong legal framework with good transparency” – characteristics the firm seeks when expanding overseas.

Chiwayland’s portfolio of properties now spans China, Australia and the US. The company said it hopes to grow its international footprint with planned expansion in North America, western Europe and Asia, subject to an extraordinary general meeting to be held next month.

It anticipates contributions from overseas projects to account for at least 50 per cent of its revenue within five years.

Chiwayland’s shares closed 0.7 cents or 5.47 per cent higher at 13.5 cents yesterday before the announcement of the Los Angeles project.

“China’s territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests in the South China Sea shall, under no circumstances, be affected by those awards. China opposes and will never accept any claim or action based on those awards,” the statement said.

The statement said the unilateral initiation of the arbitration case was an act “of bad faith”.

“It aims not to resolve the relevant disputes between China and the Philippines, or to maintain peace and stability in the South China Sea, but to deny China’s territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests in the South China Sea,” said the statement.

The tribunal, appointed by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague, announced on Tuesday that China has no “historic title” over the South China Sea.

The conduct of the tribunal and its awards are “unjust and unlawful”, the statement said and added that it seriously contravened the general practice of international arbitration and completely deviated from the object and purpose of UNCLOS to promote the peaceful settlement of disputes.

In 2002, China and the member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations signed the Declaration of Conduct in the South China Sea, which rules that the relevant parties should resolve disputes through peaceful dialogue and negotiation.

“By unilaterally initiating the arbitration, the Philippines violated UNCLOS and its provisions on the application of dispute settlement procedures, the principle of ’pacta sunt servanda’ (agreements must be kept) and other rules and principles of international law,” said the statement.

Besides Myanmar, Pakistan and India, Vietnamese exporters had to contend with Thailand selling off a huge stockpile of its rice.

In the first quarter, rice exports soared more than 50 per cent, mostly because of contracts signed last year.

But with domestic rice prices higher than global rice prices in March and April, many domestic enterprises were unable to sign new contracts, leading to a fall in exports in the second quarter.

Asian countries remained the main buyers, taking 67 per cent of total rice exports, followed by Africa with 16.4 per cent and the Americas with 11.9 per cent, according to a report released at an association meeting held last Friday.