Malina (VNA) – The Philippines expects its "E🔯xtended Producer Responsibility" (EPR) that came into force last year will help it curb plastic waste.
The EPR law - the first of its kind in Southeast Asia - imposes penalties on companies over plastic waste. It is intended to achieve "plastic neutrality" by forcing large businesses to reduce plastic pollution through product design and removing waste from the environment.
The companies are obliged to cover an initial 20% of their plastic packaging footprint, calculated based on the weight of plastic packaging they put into the market. The obligation will rise to a ceiling of 80% by 2028.
The law covers a broad range of plastics, including flexible types that are commercially unviable for recycling and thus often go uncollected. However, it does not ban any plastics, including the popular but difficult to recover and recycle single-use sachets common in the Philippines.
So far, around half of the eligible companies under the law have launched EPR programmes.
More than 1,000 companies are also expected to do so by the end of December or face fines of up to 20 million PHP (343,000 USD) and even revocation of their operating licenses.
According to Environment Undersecretary Jonas Leones, the law removed 486,000 tonnes of plastic waste from the environment in 2023.
The figure exceeds the 2023 target and is part of a broader strategy to reduce the environmental impact of plastic pollution. The law allows companies to sell plastic credits, and the project is making a tangible difference. However, he said, the law has yet to create a circular process for plastics.
However, Floradema Eleazar, an official from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), asserted that EPR is still a very strong policy. According to World Bank (WB)'s estimates, the Philippines, with a population of 120 million, generates about 1.7 million tonnes of post-consumer plastic waste annually, of which more than 30% ends up in landfills and 35% is illegally dumped./.
With the current rising trend, trade between Vietnam and the Philippines is likely to exceed 8 billion USD for the first time to hit about 8.5 billion USD in 2024, with Vietnam’s surplus of more than 3 billion USD, according to the Vietnamese Trade Office in the Philippines.
The Philippines is expected to import more rice in 2024 and the next year, remaining as the world’s top importer of this staple food as the El Nino, La Nina and recent typhoons have curbed domestic production.
The article stressed that throughout his revolutionary career, the founder of modern Vietnam consistently regarded the revolutionary press as a vital part of the Vietnamese Party’s and nation’s revolutionary struggle.
Pichai said the trade talks with the US are important and need to move forward professionally, without regard for any political changes in Thailand, believing that Thailand has clear principles, guidelines and procedures in place.
The tax adjustment supports the Malaysian Government’s strategy to reduce reliance on foreign food supply chains and to assist domestic farmers, a finance official has said.
The proposed venue is located in the Chatuchak area of Bangkok, featuring eight public sites, including Krungthep Aphiwat Central Terminal and several nearby parks.
Connectivity is expected to improve further with the completion of the fifth Laos–Thailand Friendship Bridge by the end of 2025, facilitating logistics and agricultural exports to Vietnam, Thailand, and China.
Two naval gunboats intercepted a fishing vessel carrying 1.5 tonnes of methamphetamine hydrochloride off the coast of the main island of Luzon just before dawn, in a joint operation with the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency.
In the today context of socio-economic development and growth, the professionalism of Vietnam’s revolutionary journalists continues to rise, guided by exemplary mastery of new information technologies and the modernisation of their founding principles to preserve the enduring values of revolutionary journalism.
Thai Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Commerce Vuttikrai Leewiraphan Thailand's formal proposal will be substantial enough for the US to consider further detailed negotiations. He hoped for a tariff rate not exceeding 10% and suggested that the US might extend the negotiation period if an agreement is not reached by the July 8 deadline.
Organised by the Ministry of Culture and the Association of Thai Silk & Culture Promotions, the event honors Her Majesty the Queen on her 47th birthday anniversary and promotes Thai craftsmanship on an international stage.
Prensa Latina's recent article on Vietnam’s assurance of smooth and effective transition to a leaner structure highlighted Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh’s latest directions on implementing 28 resolutions regarding the decentralisation and delegation of authority.
The lab focuses on four key thematic areas: energy transition and green innovation, sustainable agriculture, circular economy and sustainable cities, and nature-based solutions and biodiversity.
The key content of the document titled "Accelerating Innovative Strategies: Addressing the OOSCY Challenges" will be refined further in a seminar preceding the 47th ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur this October.
This follows Telegram’s serious failure to address the content that has been repeatedly reported to them, despite various efforts of negotiation and cooperation made by MCMC, it said.
Efforts to empower women must transcend dialogue and translate into concrete commitments, including corporate pledges and government partnerships, according to the spouse of Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.
The forum featured two in-depth discussion sessions, engaging representatives from governments, think tanks, and businesses from both ASEAN and China, on how to forge closer ties for a common future.
The new FIFA Hub in Jakarta will not only support football development in Indonesia but also serve as a coordination centre for 21 football associations across Southeast and East Asia.
Minister Counselor Nguyen Hoang Nguyen reaffirmed Vietnam’s principled and consistent stance on the Palestine issue, calling for an immediate and lasting ceasefire across the entire Gaza Strip.
PM Anwar Ibrahim affirmed the determination of Malaysia, as ASEAN Chair for 2025, to utilise all viable regional mechanisms of the bloc and work with partners to de-escalate violence and restore a peace process led by Myanmar.
Talking to the Vietnam News Agency on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the Vietnam’s Revolutionary Press Day (June 21, 1925–2025), Nikulina, who is also a veteran journalist of Russia’s Sputnik News, emphasised the vital role of mainstream journalism in defending the truth and maintaining public trust.
