Human capital: Asia’s decisive advantage in the energy transition

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Asia is scaling renewable power, electrification and clean manufacturing faster than any other part of the world. Yet the pace is outstripping the availability of skilled workers, creating a bottleneck that could slow progress towards net zero.
Global renewable energy jobs reached 16.2 million in 2023, an 18 per cent increase year on year, driven largely by growth in solar energy, equipment manufacturing and power…

Thailand picks Blackpink’s Lisa as tourism ambassador – will Chinese visitors return?

Thailand’s slump in visitors from China has become so acute that Chinese tourism workers in Phuket are learning English for the first time to attract new customers, according to a boat tour organiser.
Chanchanat Boonlon said her catamaran business was once a cash cow, fully booked each day during high season by large groups of Chinese visitors who flocked to Phuket, Thailand’s largest island.
While the Lunar New Year holiday next month brings hopes of a seasonal bounce, data on arrivals from…

Singapore to acquire Lee Kuan Yew’s 38 Oxley Road home for preservation

The site at 38 Oxley Road was gazetted for acquisition on Thursday, the Singapore Land Authority (SLA) and the National Heritage Board (NHB) said in a media release.
This follows the gazetting of the site as a national monument on December 12, 2025.
The site was the home of Singapore’s founding prime minister Lee Kuan Yew. It was also where events took place that shaped the country’s independence movement and national history.
“The site was gazetted for acquisition today in order to safeguard…

How shared Asean visa could help Philippines find its travel feet

As Asean tourism leaders met this week to discuss regional matters, observers say a common visitor visa for the bloc and aligned digital connectivity will even out tourism growth and help lagging countries like the Philippines catch up.
The 63rd Asean National Tourism Organisation Meeting, held in Cebu in the Philippines on Monday, was also attended by tourism chiefs from Japan, China and South Korea – countries that were instrumental in boosting tourism in the region.
In 2024, 20 million…

Malaysian man arrested after illegal sea crossing to see pregnant second wife in Indonesia

A 46-year-old man from Perak in Malaysia sneaked out of the country to visit his pregnant second wife without his first wife’s knowledge.
He landed in hot water when he was arrested while returning from Indonesia via an illegal route. His passport was being held by his first wife.
The man, a lorry driver, who just arrived from Tanjung Balai in Indonesia, told officers he had travelled to Medan to visit his pregnant second wife.
“My second wife was pregnant and in critical condition, which is why…

Philippines steps up patrols around ‘significant’ gas find amid security concerns

The Philippine military and coastguard have stepped up security around a newly announced natural gas discovery off Palawan, treating the operation as a test case for protecting future offshore energy projects in contested waters, according to officials familiar with the deployment.
The expanded patrols cover Malampaya East-1, a fresh gas and condensate find about 5km from the existing Malampaya gas field, the country’s most important domestic energy source, which supplies fuel to power plants on…