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Around 526 million of the world population without access to electricity can be found in Asia, with India having the biggest chunk at 237 million, according to data from the International Energy Agency (IEA) compiled by the Asia News Network. But when compared relatively to the size of its population, India’s electrification rate was at 81 percent, higher compared to other countries like Myanmar, Cambodia, Philippines, Bangladesh, and Pakistan. According to IEA data, the Philippines has 21 million people without access to electricity, which constitutes around 21 percent of the country’s population. Bangladesh, Pakistan, Myanmar, and Indonesia have 60 million, 50 million, and 49 million people respectively without access to electricity. China, Thailand, Laos and Sri Lanka have been moderately successful in providing access to power to their citizens, with each country just having one million people without access to electricity. A total of 1.3 billion people in the world have no access to electricity according to the IEA. YG/JE/rga   RELATED STORIES Electricity bills to rise this year Electricity rates to decline in October — Meralco TAGS: Asia, data, electricity, Energy, population, Power For feedback, complaints, or inquiries, contact us.

US Embassy in Manila, Philippines. AP FILE PHOTO The US Embassy in Manila on Wednesday said information from its drug enforcement administration office was “instrumental” in the arrest of a 22-year-old Filipino who attempted to smuggle more than four kilos of cocaine into the country. In a statement, the embassy lauded the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) and member agencies of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport for the arrest of Jon-Jon Villamin Jr., who was nabbed upon his arrival in Manila from Dubai. READ: Man with 4.8 kilos of cocaine nabbed at Naia “We are especially pleased that information from the U.S. Embassy’s Drug Enforcement Administration Office was instrumental in making this arrest, a testament to our longstanding bilateral counternarcotics and law enforcement coordination,” the statement read. Intelligence officer II Bienvenido Castillo said he was tipped by the PDEA on the arrival of a possible drug mule. Villamin denied knowing that he had cocaine in his luggage, saying he was just instructed by a Brazilian friend to bring the luggage to Manila. In a press conference at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in Laos last month, US President Barack Obama said the American government was willing to partner with the Philippines in going after drug traffickers as long as it was in consonance with human rights and international law. JE READ: Obama: US wants to partner with PH in drug crusade, but… Latest BOC imports lack clearance to play in V-League Why Duterte likes to insult Duterte sure it’s De Read More …

The defense ministers of the Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia have agreed to explore joint air patrols during their trilateral meeting in Hawaii for the Asean-US Dialogue. “The three ministers agreed to explore joint air patrols even while their respective armed forces are finalizing the parameters for maritime patrol in the agreed upon transit corridor in what the three countries consider as maritime areas of common concern,” the Department of National Defense (DND) said in a statement on Monday. Last month, the three countries signed a document on standard operating procedures for trilateral maritime cooperation to secure regional waters. READ: Indonesia to start joint sea patrols with Malaysia, PH The agreement to launch joint patrol in the seas after an increase of kidnappings led by the Abu Sayyaf this year. “Primarily driven by the need to address the rising incidents of armed robbery at sea, kidnapping and piracy in the three countries’ areas of common concern, the trilateral meeting has evolved to be a platform for the defense ministers to address other emerging common concerns to include violent extremism,” the DND said. “The phenomenon of returning fighters from the conflict in the Middle East could eventually create security challenges for the three countries, something which the ministers recognized and hence their decision to further get their act together,” it added. JE/rga Latest Cousin of rob convict Herbert Colanggo shot, wounded in Ozamiz ‘Igme’ exits PAR Majority floor leader advises Duterte: Less talk, more work ‘Ang Probinsyano’ turns 1, ends in December Recommended Read More …

This May 11, 2015 file photo shows land reclamation of Mischief Reef in the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea. (Ritchie B. Tongo/Pool Photo via AP, File) Defense ministers from Asean and the United States agreed Saturday to work closer together to strengthen maritime security in the region to combat terrorism, respond to natural disasters and, crucially, manage tensions at sea. They were at the Asean-US Defense Ministers’ Informal Meeting in Hawaii, where they discussed practical ways to prevent incidents from escalating in the South China Sea amid heightened tensions in the contested waters recently. Asean ministers welcomed the US’ continued engagement in the region and its active role in the Asean Defense Ministers’ Meeting-Plus, a forum which also includes China, Japan, South Korea, India, Russia, Australia and New Zealand. The ministers also discussed direct lines of communication and forums to resolve disputes, Singapore Defense Minister Ng Eng Hen said. “We need not only the absence of tensions but established platforms to anticipate and defuse problems before they occur,” he told his counterparts. He called for a Code for Unplanned Encounters at Sea, which guides how military vessels should react to situations, to include coast guards and non-military ships, and for regional navies to develop a code of conduct for submariners to enhance underwater safety. Asean ministers meet regularly with their counterparts from key partners, but the current meeting comes as the US is keen to stress its commitment to its Asia rebalance. US Defense Secretary Ash Carter told Read More …

Mary Jane Fiesta Veloso AFP PHOTO / SURYO WIBOWO A journalist in Indonesia on Monday stood by reports that President Rodrigo Duterte gave the go-signal for the execution of Filipino drug convict Mary Jane Veloso, sharing the audio clip of Indonesian President Joko Widodo making the claim. Adam Harvey, ABC correspondent in Indonesia, told INQUIRER.net Widodo shared his version of his conversation with Duterte in a public forum, which was covered and reported by other Indonesian media. “He (Widodo) was speaking to the media outside the grand mosque in Serang, Banten (for the Eid’l Adha),” Harvey said to this reporter on Facebook. Harvey posted a raw audio clip of Widodo’s statement in Indonesian on Facebook, which he translated as: “I told him that she carried 2.6 kilogram heroin and I told him about the reasons for the delay of her execution. President Duterte then said ‘Please go ahead’ if you want to execute her.” Based on the audio, a journalist asked “how about the legal process” on Veloso’s execution, to which Widodo replied: “Attorney general will handle it, but that’s what President Duterte said.” But the Philippine presidential palace maintained that Duterte only told Widodo to “follow your own law” and “I will not interfere.” READ: Palace: Duterte told Widodo to ‘follow own law’ in Veloso case Foreign Affairs Secretary Perfecto Yasay also claimed that Duterte only said that “he respects their judicial processes and will accept whatever the final decision they will arrive at regarding her case.” Harvey took Read More …