By Heng Pheakdey

Until very recently, to get the job you want, all you need is to have the right hard skills  which refer to the technical skills necessary to perform your job. For instance, to be a journalist, you need to know how to write a good story; to be a teacher, you to know how to teach; to be an accountant, you need good math and know how to operate accounting software and so on.

BY HANG CHUON NARON AND ANNE LEMAISTRE

We know that literacy is the basis for lifelong learn­ing that contri­butes to poverty reduction, democratization, and sustainable development. Literacy is critical for improving quality of life by allowing literate citizens to seek alternative solutions for en­hancing health and nutrition, em­powering citizens to proactively participate in community development, and inspiring citizens to value gender equality for the attainment of overall family happiness.

“Literacy not only changes lives, it saves them,” said Unesco director-general Iri­na Bokova, aptly summing up the im­portance of literacy. This year, International Literacy Day is devoted to the connection between “Liter­a­cy and Sustainable Development.”

By Chheang Vannarith

 The rise of China generates both opportunities and challenges for Southeast Asian countries. China is both a global and regional economic locomotive. It drives regional economic development through the flows of trade, investment, and development assistance. But, meanwhile, it also creates a region-wide intense economic competition and a dependent-on-China economic development model.