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The growth in tourism and foreign investment in Laos is opening up numerous opportunities for young people.

But, with just over a third of Laotians completing secondary education, a department already severely under-resourced, some are finding it hard to grasp the chances on offer.

Poor English and a lack of negotiating and problem solving skills are just some of the barriers to success.

In Luang Prabang, Elise Potaka visits a couple of projects helping young Laotians find their way.

Laos has beautiful clean rivers and lush forest, and small villages with unique customs and culture.

In the 1990’s annual visitor numbers were in the tens of thousands, but now the country welcomes around one million people each year. Tourism is one of the largest generators of foreign exchange.

In particular, the eco-tourism sector has flourished, with nature and culture-based tourism accounting for nearly half of all visits.

To find out more, Elise Potaka visited the Laos’s first eco-tourism project in Luang Nam Tha province.

One of the most interesting results in Pakistan’s general election last February was the victory of the secularist parties in the North West Frontier Province (NWFP) after six years of an Islamist government.

In a province where the Taliban has made heavy inroads, the vote for the ANP and the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) seems to herald a turn toward some form of secularist democracy.

It’s only been three months, but the secularists seem to be backsliding.

The secular parties have agreed to allow qazi Islamic courts to operate in the mountainous region near Afghanistan.

Qazi courts have a judge who hears cases and quickly hands down decisions based on his interpretation of Sharia law.

Mudassar Shah reports on why this form of justice is increasingly popular.