Cambodia's Securities Exchange to start trading in April with one listed firm

PHNOM PENH, Feb. 29 (Xinhua) -- The state-owned Phnom Penh Water Supply Authority (PPWSA) will be the first firm to list on Cambodia's Security Exchange (CSX) on April 18, officials said Wednesday.
In the first IPOs (Initial Public Offerings), the PPWSA will sell 13 million shares, or 15 percent of the company's whole shares, Dong Hyuk Yoon, head of Investment Bank Tong Yang Securities-Hong Kong, which is the preparer of the IPOs for the PPWSA, said during a presentation to about 300 prospective investors.
He said the offering price per share is between 1-1.57 U.S. dollars and the share subscription will begin from March 29 to April 4. The listing on the CSX will be on April 18.
The CSX, a joint venture between the government of Cambodia (55 percent) and the Korean Exchange (45 percent), was inaugurated last July, but no trading has come online since then due to lack of listing company.
The PPWSA is one of the three state-owned enterprises that the government ordered to prepare IPOs to list on the CSX. The other two are Sihanoukville Autonomous Port and Telecom Cambodia.
Ek Sonn Chan, PPWSA's director general, said that buying the shares of the PPWSA would be a good chance for investors to make a return earning as the company has seen stable revenues in recent years.
He said that according to the financial statement, the PPWSA earned a total revenue of 28.4 million U.S. dollars last year. After being cleared with all operational expenses, the firm made a profit before interest and tax of 10.7 million U.S. dollars last year.

Cambodia finalizes law to protect endangered Mekong River dolphins

PHNOM PENH, Feb. 29 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia has finalized a sub- decree on the protection and conservation of endangered Irrawaddy dolphins in the country's eastern provinces, said a government official on Wednesday.
Through the sub-decree, the areas of 180 kilometers along Mekong River from the border of Laos to Cambodia's Stung Treng and Kratie provinces will be protected as dolphin habitats, Touch Seang Tana, chairman of Cambodia's Commission for Conversation and Development of the Mekong River Dolphins Eco- tourism Zone, said in a press briefing.
The Mekong River Irrawaddy dolphin has been listed as critically endangered on the World Conservation Union Red List of Threatened Species since 2004, he said.
"The sub-decree reflects the government's efforts in protecting and conserving this endangered mammal species for the next generations," he said. "The conservation will be a boost for the development of eco-tourism in the areas."
The sub-decree is expected to be passed by the Cabinet in the next couple of weeks.
Under the sub-decree, villagers will be allowed to use only cast nets to fish in the areas, while other fishing devices such as gill nets and fish cages are banned from the areas, he said, adding that floating houses are also banned from the areas.
Last year, three dolphins had been killed by gill nets.
"We believe that the measures will save dolphins from deaths by trapping in gill nets or fish cages," he said.
Touch Seang Tana said that it is estimated that currently the total population of Mekong river dolphins in the areas is around 180 heads, but the World Wildlife Fund put the number at 85 only.

IMF forecasts Cambodia's economic growth at 6.5 pct in 2012

PHNOM PENH, Feb. 28 (Xinhua) -- The International Monetary Fund (IMF) predicted that Cambodia's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth would reach 6.5 percent this year, according to the Fund's press release on Tuesday.
The prediction is based on the buoyant garments exports, increasing tourist arrivals, and a gradually-improving real estate sector as well as increasing agricultural sector, said the press release.
However, it said that the fragility of the global recovery exposed Cambodia's narrow export base to significant downside risks.
"Cambodia is highly sensitive to economic activity in the U.S. and Europe, which account for about two thirds of its total exports and the bulk of high-end tourist arrivals," it said, adding "any immediate financial spillovers, however, would likely be limited and mostly indirect."
The Fund's forecast was the same as the recent predictions by the government of Cambodia, the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank.
The Fund said that the country's inflation rate was 5.75 percent in 2011, driven by higher food and fuel prices, and is expected to ease only gradually in 2012, in part reflecting a moderation in global commodity prices.
Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen said on Monday that the country's GDP in 2011 was 7 percent, or 13 billion U.S. dollars.

IMF advises Cambodia's central bank to halt licenses to new banks

PHNOM PENH, Feb. 28 (Xinhua) -- The International Monetary Fund (IMF) advised the National Bank of Cambodia (NBC) not to grant licenses to new banks to strengthen the supervision and health of the country's existing banks, said the Fund's in a press release issued on Tuesday.
"For Cambodia, the main challenge ahead is building a deeper financial system while safeguarding financial stability," the Fund said after the IMF Executive Board Concluded 2011 Article IV Consultation with Cambodia earlier this month.
"Amid a rapidly growing banking system, a moratorium on bank licenses would provide a critical window to build adequate supervisory capacity and improve the balance between the degree of competition and health of banks."
The country, with the population of 14.5 million, currently has 32 commercial banks, seven specialized banks, 32 microfinance institutions and 29 rural credit operators, according to the NBC's report, adding that the banking industry has the total current asset of 7.94 billion U.S. dollars by the end of last year.
The NBC's Director General Nguon Sokha said Tuesday that more banks would bring new capital, technologies and options for customers.
"New foreign banks with good qualifications and international reputation are still welcomed because they will inject new capital into Cambodian economy, bring new hi-tech banking technology and provide more options for customers," he told Xinhua over telephone.
Under Cambodia's laws, it requires a registered capital of 37.5 million dollars to open a commercial bank.

Thai soldiers kill 7 Cambodian illegal loggers in two months: Cambodian diplomat

PHNOM PENH, Feb. 28 (Xinhua) -- Since the start of this year, Thai soldiers had killed at least seven Cambodian villagers who illegally crossed the border to log in Thailand, Long Visalo, a secretary of state at Cambodia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said on Tuesday.
He said that the death toll is quite high compared to the whole 2011 during which Thai troops killed 12 Cambodian illegal loggers.
He said that the latest shootings happened on February 22 when Thai soldiers opened fire at a group of Cambodian villagers who crossed the border to Thailand in an area of Meng Mot commune, Kabchheung district, Surin province, killing three Cambodian men.
"This is an inhuman act against Cambodian villagers," he told reporters after he presented a letter of complaint to Thai Ambassador to Cambodia Sompong Sanguanbun.
"The Cambodian government considers this intended shooting as a breach of internationally accepted humanitarian principle, and a violation of the spirit of Point 77 of the Record of Discussion of the sixth meeting of the Joint Commission for Bilateral Cooperation between Cambodia and Thailand in August, 2009 in Bangkok," said the letter.
It added that Cambodia requests the Thai authorities to take appropriate measures to prevent such killing from recurrence and to bring to justice those who committed the above act of cruelty.
"In case of illegal crossing the border or committing illegal act in the future, the government of Cambodia requests the authorities concerned of Thailand to avoid shooting, but to arrest the perpetrators and proceed with legal action," it said.

Firms receive 1.67 million hectares of economic concessional land from Cambodian gov't

PHNOM PENH, Feb. 28 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia has granted economic concessional land of 1.67 million hectares to 169 local and foreign firms so far; however, 51 of them with 479,000 hectares have been revoked licenses because they failed to comply with contracts and master-plans, said a senior government official on Tuesday.
Currently, there are 118 valid firms with 1.19 million hectares of economic concessional land in 17 provinces, Ith Nody, a secretary of state at the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, said Tuesday in the annual meeting of the Ministry of Land Management.
He said that among the valid firms, 41 companies are owned by local investors and 77 are foreign firms.
Among the foreign firms, 27 from China, 28 from Vietnam, 5 from South Korea, 5 from Thailand, 2 from the United States, 3 from Malaysia, 3 from India and one each from Singapore, Israel, Australia and Sweden.
Cambodia has begun to grant economic concessional land to private investors since 1993, aiming at boosting agricultural and agro-industrial plantation and processing for exports, which is expected to create jobs and generate incomes for the people living in the rural area.
A company can get maximum 10,000 hectares of economic concessional land for maximum 99 years.
Agricultural crops in that economic concessional land are rubber, oil palm, sugar cane, acacia, eucalyptus trees and cassava, he said.

China donates equipment to Cambodia for 2012 ASEAN meetings

Chinese Ambassador to Cambodia Pan Guangxue (L) presents China's equipment assistance to Cambodia's Deputy Prime Minister Hor Namhong, minister of foreign affairs and international cooperation in Phnom Penh, Feb. 27, 2012. The government of China on Monday delivered office supplies and equipment worth 403,000 U.S. dollars to Cambodia in order to ease the country's burden when it hosts the ASEAN summit and related Summits this year. (Xinhua/ Sovannara)

PHNOM PENH, Feb. 27 (Xinhua) -- The government of China on Monday delivered office supplies and equipment worth 403,000 U.S. dollars to Cambodia in order to ease the country's burden when it hosts the ASEAN summit and related Summits this year. The office supplies and equipment included 200 sets of desktops, 60 sets of laser printers, 100 sets of laptops, 5 sets of projectors, 50 voice recorders, 20 fax machines, 5 color duplicators, 10 sets of binding machines and 20 flatbed scanners.
The handover ceremony was made between the Ambassador of China to Cambodia Pan Guangxue and Cambodia's Deputy Prime Minister Hor Namhong, minister of foreign affairs and international cooperation.
"The donation is to express China's full support to Cambodia for chairing ASEAN this year," said Pan Guangxue. "China hopes that these supplies and equipment will help Cambodian staff work effectively in hosting ASEAN summits this year."
Meanwhile, Hor Namhong said that the office supplies and equipment were very necessary for Cambodia to use for the work of ASEAN meetings.
"The assistance truly reflects China's attention to Cambodia and the donation mirrors good and special relations between the peoples and governments of Cambodia and China."
He also highlighted sound cooperation between the two countries in all fields, especially politics, trade, investment, tourism and culture.
"On behalf of the government of Cambodia and Cambodian people, I'd like to express my sincere thanks to the government and the people of China for their constantly supporting Cambodia in all circumstances," he said. "With China's assistance, we believe that Cambodia will host ASEAN Summit and related Summits this year successfully."
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

Gunman shoots Cambodian garment workers still unidentified: police

PHNOM PENH, Feb. 22 (Xinhua) -- The gunman who shot at mass protesting Cambodian garment workers and injured three female workers earlier this week has not been identified, said the police chief of Svay Rieng's Bavet city on Wednesday.
The Monday's shooting happened at the Manhattan Special Economic Zone (SEZ) situated in Bavet city when some 3,000 workers from three factories, namely Kingmaker Footwear, Kaoway Sports, and Sheico, were protesting for salary increase.
"So far, the investigation is underway and the identity of the shooter is still unknown. We only know that the man is a civilian, not in armed forces," Keo Kong, police chief of Bavet city, told Xinhua on Wednesday.
He said the perpetrator with a pistol approached the protesting workers by a car and fired to them before he escaped into the nearby Acacia forest.
Keo Kong said, according to Cambodia's legislature, civilians are prohibited from weapon possession. The reason for the armed civilian remains unknown.
The three victims in the shooting are Buot Chenda, 21, who is in critical condition after shot on her chest and exited her back. The two others are Keo Nea and Nuth Sakhorn, who were shot slightly injured.
Speaking at the opening of the Interior Ministry's annual conference on Tuesday, the Minister of Interior Sar Kheng said the government was very sorry to see such incident happened and vowed to bring the wrong-doer to legal punishment.
He said the bloody event would be likely to affect Cambodia's bid for a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) in the 2013-2014 term.
"The incident in Svay Rieng and the one in Kratie province last month, a company's security guard fired at protesting villagers in land dispute, will make international community think that Cambodia has violence, human rights abuse, and forced evictions in land disputes... These incidents would affect Cambodia's diplomatic policy."
At the meantime, the minister denied any police's involvement in the shooting.
"The police have obligations to maintain security and public order, we are not ought to shoot civilians," he said.
Lawyer Sok Sam Oeun, executive director of NGO-Cambodian Defenders Project, said Wednesday that the shootings reflected police's inability to safeguard unarmed protesting workers and mirrored the government's weakness in weapon control.
"The police said the gunman is a civilian, why does he have weapon?" he questioned. "To restore police's credit, they must hunt the wrong-doer for legal procedures, or the case will send Cambodia's bad image to international community -- the culture of impunity for perpetrators."
Svay Rieng is located some 167 kilometers Southeast of Phnom Penh and bordered by Vietnam.
Garment industry is the country's largest income maker. The sector earned total revenues of 4.24 billion U.S. dollars last year, representing 87 percent of the country's total exports.
The whole industry consisted of more than 300 factories, employing more than 300,000 people, mostly women from rural areas.
Low wages and poor working conditions have led to frequent strikes in this Southeast Asian nation. The minimum monthly wage for a worker is 66 U.S. dollars.

ADB provides Cambodia 69 mln USD for provincial road improvement

PHNOM PENH, Feb. 22 (Xinhua) -- The Asian Development Bank (ADB) signed up to provide 69 million U.S. dollars to Cambodia to support a major upgrade of provincial roads in some of the country ' s poorest provinces, according to the bank's press release on Wednesday.
According to the press conference, the loan agreement was inked between the ADB's Vice-President Stephen Groff and Cambodia's Minister of Economy and Finance Keat Chhon yesterday.
The provincial roads improvement project, financed by a 52 million dollar loan from ADB's Special Funds and a 17 million dollar loan and grant from the Pilot Program for Climate Resilience (PPCR), will be used to rehabilitate about 150 kilometers of unpaved provincial roads in Kampong Chhnang, Kampong Speu, Prey Veng and Svay Rieng provinces, homes found a large number of the country's rural poor.
"Efficient transport is critical for economic growth. This initiative will provide safe, cost effective and year-round access to markets, employment centers and social services for poor and remote communities," Groff said.
The press release said Cambodia's remote rural economy is becoming increasingly dependent on the road network. However, only 11 percent of the total 9,500 kilometer secondary national and provincial roads are paved. As a result, economic opportunities are limited.
Moreover, the transportation safety has become a serious concern with the steady growth in traffic, overloaded cargo vehicles, and poor road maintenance, which all caused the highest accident rate in the region.
Since the early 1990s, ADB has supported Cambodia to build or upgrade its road network including national, provincial and rural roads.
By the end of 2011, ADB's assistance to the transport sector consisted of 11 projects amounting to 373 million U.S. dollars.
It said the ADB's loan for the Provincial Road Improvement Project, from its concessional Special Funds, will have 32 year term including an eight-year grace period carrying a 1 per annum interest charge, rising to 1.5 percent a year for the balance of the term.
The Ministry of Public Works and Transport is the executing agency for the project, which will commence in April 2012 and be completed in March 2017.

Unidentified gunman opens fire on protesting Cambodian workers

PHNOM PENH, Feb. 20 (Xinhua) -- Three female Cambodian garment workers got wounded on Monday by bullets shot from an unidentified gunman while they were protesting for salary increase in front of their factories in Svay Rieng province bordering with Vietnam, said police.
"One young female worker was critically wounded on her chest and the other two girls were slightly wounded in the shooting," Keo Kong, police chief of Svay Rieng's Bavet city, told Xinhua by telephone after the incident.
He said while some 3,000 workers at the Kingmaker Footwear, Kaoway Sports and Sheico in the Manhattan Special Economic Zone ( SEZ) situated in Bavet city were protesting by burning tires and destroying the factories' properties, a gunman dressed in white shirt approached the workers by a car and opened fire on them.
"After the shooting, the man escaped into a nearby Acacia forest," he said. "We are investigating for the identity of the gunman."
The wounded workers had been sent to the provincial hospital soon after the incident, he said.
Chieng Am, Governor of Svay Rieng province, said that the workers at the three factories had conducted strikes for a couple of days in order to ask employers to raise salaries for them.
He denied some local media reporting that the police opened gunfire on the workers.
"Our police are deployed just to protect the factories' properties, not to shoot workers," he said.
He added that he had ordered the police to hunt the perpetrator for legal punishment.
One of the protesters, Tep Kunny, at the Kaoway Sports factory, said that she had heard that the seriously wounded worker had already died at the hospital.
Kunny said the factories in the Manhattan Special Economic Zone (SEZ) have no worker representative or union.
The garment industry is the country's largest income maker. The sector earned total revenues of 4.24 billion U.S. dollars last year, representing 87 percent of the country's total exports.
The whole industry consisted of more than 300 factories, employing more than 300,000 people, mostly women from rural areas.
Low wages and poor working conditions have led to frequent strikes in this Southeast Asian nation. The minimum monthly wage for a worker is 66 U.S. dollars.

Cambodia, China willing to further enhance cooperation in all fields: officials

PHNOM PENH, Feb. 20 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia and China are willing to further promote bilateral cooperation in all fields in the framework of ASEAN-China relations, officials said Monday.
The commitment was made during the official visit of Ma Mingqiang, secretary general of ASEAN-China Center, to Cambodia.
In a meeting with Cambodia's Minister of Tourism Thong Khon, Ma Mingqiang said this was his official visit to Cambodia since the ASEAN-China Center was launched on Nov.18,2011.
"The visit aims at promoting ASEAN-China cooperation in trade, investment, tourism, education, and culture," he said.
Meanwhile, Thong Khon said Cambodia saw China as a big source of visitors to Cambodia in the near future.
He added that last year, Cambodia received 247,000 Chinese tourists, up 39.2 percent, making Chinese tourists the third largest arrival groups to Cambodia.
"Based on the trend, the country expects to see about 600,000 Chinese visitors here in 2015 and up to 1 million in 2020," said the minister. "To achieve this goal, we have been strengthening our tourism product quality and services, and encouraging hotels, restaurants and resorts to use Chinese language in order to meet the needs of Chinese tourists."
Cambodia and China signed tourism cooperation on Feb. 9, 1999, he said.
On Monday, Ma had also met with Pich Rithi, director general of the commerce ministry's general directorate of domestic trade, and both sides had affirmed the necessity to boost bilateral trade and investment cooperation for mutual interests.
Pich Rithi said Cambodia saw China as the largest market for Cambodian agricultural products, especially rice and cassava, so that he asked Ma to help attract Chinese businesspeople and investors to do business in the fields in order to increase Cambodia's exports to China.
Ma said that through the ASEAN-China Center, he would try to promote Cambodia's investment potentials to Chinese investors and the world.
Also, on the day, Ma had met with Chea Sienghong, a secretary of state at the Ministry of Industry, Mines and Energy, and Soeung Rathchavy, a secretary of state at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.
Ma and his delegation arrived here on Feb. 19 for a 3-day visit. They will leave Cambodia for Vietnam on Tuesday.

Thailand raises trophy in int' l friendly hockey matches in Cambodia

PHNOM PENH, Feb. 19 (Xinhua) -- Thailand's hockey squad on Sunday won the trophy in the international friendly hockey tournament, which was held at the Vietcam Sports Centre in the capital's Dangkor district.
The two-day event had participated by four countries: Cambodia, Thailand, Japan and England.
After the competitions, Japan and Cambodia earned the second and third places respectively.
Speaking at the closing of the matches on Sunday, Vath Chamroeun, secretary general of Cambodia's National Olympic Committee, said the tournament was to bridge relationship and to exchange experience among all participating hockey athletes.
"We hope that there will be more countries participating in such event next year," he said.
Cambodia officially established the Hockey Federation at the end of 2010. Currently, there are more than 50 Cambodian hockey athletes including a dozen of female in training.

Cambodia's ruling party wins 46 seats, opposition 11 in Senate race: official results

PHNOM PENH, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- The Cambodian People's Party ( CPP) of Prime Minister Hun Sen gained 46 seats and Sam Rainsy Party (SRP), the country's main opposition party, won the remaining 11 seats in the election for the third legislature of the Senate late last month, according to the official results released by the National Election Committee (NEC) on Saturday.
Tep Nytha, NEC's secretary general, said that among the 57 elected senators, 8 are women--six belong to the CPP and two are in the SRP.
The Jan. 29's election had only the two parties in contest, and the voters were only 119 Members of Parliament and 11,351 commune councilors.
The Senate has 61 seats, but the election was held for only 57 seats as two senators will be nominated by the King and the other two by the National Assembly.
According to the constitution, the Senate will hold its first session no later than 60 days after the election.
Before taking office, the Senate will decide on the validity of each member's mandate and vote separately to choose a president, vice presidents and its members of each commission by a two-third majority vote, it said.
Cambodia's Senate election is held once in six years. The last one was in January 2006, at that time, three parties -- Cambodian People's Party, royalist Funcinpec and Sam Rainsy Party -- joined the race. As a result, the CPP won 45 seats, the royalist Funcinpec 10 seats and the Sam Rainsy Party two seats.

Cambodia vows to deepen ties between ASEAN and dialogue partners: PM

PHNOM PENH, Feb. 16 (Xinhua) -- As the chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) this year, Cambodia is committed to build closer relations and cooperation between ASEAN and its dialogue partners, Prime Minister Hun Sen said Thursday.
"As the ASEAN chair, Cambodia will play a model role to deepen ties between ASEAN and East Asia nations such as China, Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), South Korea and Japan as well as countries in the region including the United States and Australia," he said.
Cambodia wanted to see ASEAN to be stronger and more influential in order to work more effectively in regional and global levels, he said at the opening of the 2012 Cambodia Outlook Conference under the theme "Cambodia's Priorities for Inclusive Growth, Regional Integration and ASEAN Leadership."
Meanwhile, the premier highlighted the important role of China in the help to develop economics and societies in ASEAN.
"Cambodia, ASEAN member states alike, is situated very close to China, which is the world's second largest economy and the world's largest market for agricultural products," he said. "These are valuable assets and good opportunities for ASEAN to tap China's market for their social and economic development."
The premier also reiterated that as the ASEAN chair, the country would try all its best to push ASEAN to realize a community by 2015.
ASEAN groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ looks into Cambodian financial sector

PHNOM PENH, Feb. 17 (Xinhua) -- The Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ officially launched its representative office here on Friday, aimied at boosting trade and investment ties between Japan and Cambodia, said a bank's senior official.
Masato Miyachi, general manager of the bank's Asia and China Division, said that the bank's decision to open the office here was made after it observed that Cambodia's economy had seen stable growth in recent years and the interest in exploring Cambodia's market is increasing among Japanese companies.
"With our office here, we will be able to strengthen the ability of information gathering, market penetration in order to support Japanese companies who want to do businesses in Cambodia," he said at the launching ceremony.
Until now, the bank has already set up the branch and representative offices in Thailand, Vietnam, Myanmar and Cambodia.
Speaking at the event, Neav Chanthana, vice-governor of the National Bank of Cambodia, said the bank's presence here reflected Japanese investors' trust on Cambodia's banking industry and political stability.
So far, she said, the country has 4 foreign banks' representative offices, 32 commercial banks, 7 specialized banks, 32 microfinance institutions and 29 rural credit operators.
Japan is one of Cambodia's key donors; however, the country's investment in Cambodia is still relatively small. According to the figure of the Council for the Development of Cambodia, this Southeast Asian nation had attracted 3 investment projects worth only 6 million U.S. dollars from Japan last year. 

Good ties boost investment, trade, tourism between Cambodia, China

PHNOM PENH, Feb. 17 (Xinhua) -- The bilateral relations between Cambodia and China in terms of investment, trade and tourism have become stronger in the past year thanks to the two countries' good relations, said officials Friday.
Cambodia attracted China's investments of 1.19 billion U.S. dollars in 2011, up 71 percent from 694 million U.S. dollars in a year earlier, according to the Council for the Development of Cambodia (CDC).
China's 22 investment projects last year focused on property development, mineral business and processing plants, motorcycle assembly factories, gold mining, rice mill and garment factories.
The bilateral trades amounted to 2.5 billion U.S. dollars last year, up 73.5 percent, the highest growth rate among the bilateral trade between China and other ASEAN countries, according to the statistics provided by the Chinese Embassy.
Chheng Kimlong, an economics lecturer at the University of Cambodia, said the strong bilateral relations between the two countries are the most important factor resulting in sharp rises in the bilateral trade and investment.
In addition, he said, Cambodia has a number of potential sectors for investors and the country remains peaceful and political stability.
"These factors in combination with Cambodia's constant supports and incentives to Chinese investors, more and more Chinese see Cambodia as safe place for their investments," he said.
Cambodia attracted 247,200 Chinese tourists last year, an increase of 39 percent--the highest growth rate among foreign visitors to this impoverished country, said Tith Chantha, director general of the Tourism Ministry.
He said the sharp increase in Chinese visitors to Cambodia was due to attractive tourism sites, broad promotion and increasing direct flights.
"We hope that Cambodia will receive at least one million Chinese tourists by 2020," he said, adding that to achieve the target, the ministry has encouraged more training courses for Chinese speaking guides and urged hotels, restaurants and other entertainment facilities to use Chinese language.

Cambodia begins road project with China's loan

PHNOM PENH, Feb 14, 2012 (Xinhua via COMTEX) -- Cambodia on Tuesday broke ground to broaden a 40.5 kilometer section of the national road No. 6, which is a major road for tourism and trade activities.
The work began from eastern Phnom Penh's Russei Keo district to Bateay district of Kampong Cham province. The road will be widened from the current 7 meters to 26 meters.
The ground-breaking ceremony were presided over by Prime Minister Hun Sen and Chinese Ambassador to Cambodia Pan Guangxue.
Hun Sen said the project was to keep up with the rapid development of the country's economy and tourism sector.
The road connects Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia, to Siem Reap's Angkor, a world heritage site, and Banteay Meanchey province bordering Thailand. "It is quite essential for tourism and trade activities,"he said.
The project is made possible with China's soft loan of 70.25 million U.S. dollars and the Shanghai Construction (Group) General Company will undertake the construction, which is expected to complete in 38 months.
"China is the largest donor to Cambodia's road and bridge construction," the premier said. "Every achievement today has come from the very good ties between Cambodian and Chinese leaders, especially between former Cambodian King Norodom Sihanouk and former Chinese leaders Mao Zedong, Liu Shaoqi and Zhou Enlai," he said.
"On behalf of the government of Cambodia and Cambodian people, I'd like to express sincere and heartfelt thanks to the Chinese government and people for the technical and financial supports for Cambodia's social and economic development," he said.
Meanwhile, Pan Guangxue said the government of China considered providing soft loans to Cambodia for broadening the remaining 270 kilometers national road 6 from Kampong Cham province to Siem Reap province.
"China sees this road as the artery of Cambodia's economy," he said.
He added that China would continue assisting Cambodia in its effort to develop the economy with the respect of Cambodia's independence and territorial integrity.

Cambodian senior officials head to Thailand for border talks

PHNOM PENH, Feb. 12 (Xinhua) -- A group of 25 senior Cambodian officials led by Var Kimhong, senior minister in charge of border affairs, left Cambodia on Sunday afternoon for Thailand to attend the fifth meeting of the Joint Commission on Demarcation of Land Boundary to be held on Feb. 13-14.
The meeting will be the first within three years after it has been suspended since 2009 due to sporadic border clashes, Var Kimhong told reporters at the Phnom Penh International Airport before his departure.
Cambodian delegation consisted of officials at the ministries of foreign affairs, defense, interior, and land management, as well as legal experts and governors of provinces along the border.
He said the Thai side will be led by Bandhit Sotipalalit, advisor to Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs and chairman of the Thai- Cambodian Joint Commission on Demarcation for Land Boundary.
"The upcoming talks will focus on land boundary measurement and search for remaining 25 border markers outside the area of Preah Vihear temple," he said. "For the area of Preah Vihear temple, both sides have to wait until the International Court of Justice interprets the judgment of 1962 on the case concerning the temple of Preah Vihear temple."
"It is a progressive step towards tackling border dispute between the two countries," he said.
Cambodia and Thailand share a land boundary of 805 kilometers. Due to wars, the two countries' border has never been demarcated.
Since June 2006, the Cambodian-Thai Joint Commission on Demarcation of Land Boundary have found 48 border poles out of the total 73 poles, Var Kimhong said, but the search was stalled since the two countries' sporadic border clashes in 2008.
The two neighbors have had border conflict over territorial dispute near Cambodia's Preah Vihear temple since the UNESCO listed the temple as a World Heritage Site on July 7, 2008 and witnessed fierce border fighting in February and April last year during the Thai's Democrat-led administration. However, the military tension has eased since last July.

Cambodia's trade with China in 2011 up 73.5 pct

PHNOM PENH, Feb. 9 (Xinhua) -- The bilateral trade between Cambodia and China amounted to 2.5 billion U.S. dollars last year, up 73.5 percent from a year earlier, according to a report issued by the Chinese embassy in Phnom Penh on Thursday.

"The growth of trade between China and Cambodia is the highest among the bilateral trade between China and other ASEAN countries," said the report.

Cambodia's export to China totaled 184 million U.S. dollars, increased 96.8 percent, and China's exports to Cambodia reached 2. 31 billion U.S. dollars, up 71.8 percent.

Cambodia's main imports from China were garment raw materials, machinery, motorcycles, cars, foodstuffs, electronics, furniture, medicines and cosmetics.

The items the country exported to China were agricultural products, rubber, fishery, timber and textile.

Cambodia’s Cabinet passes strategic document on state debt management

   PHNOM PENH, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia’s Council of Ministers on Friday adopted a strategic document on public debt management 2011-2018, aimed at mobilizing financial resources to cope with the government’s expenses, said a press release after the meeting.

   The cabinet meeting was chaired by Prime Minister Hun Sen.

   “The document is to mobilize financial resources to meet the government’s priority expenses in national development in order to ensure financial and macroeconomic stability, to sustain economic growth between 6-7 percent a year and to cut poverty rate at least one percent a year,” said the press release.

   The document was made by the ministry of economy and finance. It does not cover the management of private debts in the country.

   Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen said in November last year that to date, the ratio of Cambodia’s debts to foreign countries such as China, the United States, Russia, and others are 27.7 percent of the GDP (Gross Domestic Product).  

   The country’s GDP in 2011 was 6.9 percent, or 12.93 billion U.S. dollars, according to the finance ministry.

   “The debt is not a concern for Cambodia as Thailand has the debt ratio to GDP is up to 40 percent,” he said at that time. “Cambodia’s debts are to use for the development of the nation and poverty alleviation.”

   According to the figure released by the finance ministry in November last year, since 1992 to 2010, Cambodia’s government had borrowed foreign countries and development partners in the total amount of 2.53 billion U.S. dollars. The figure was not included the old regime debts of 770 million U.S. dollars. 

Cambodia's industrial zones attract 1.15 bln USD investments since inception

PHNOM PENH, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia's Special Economic Zones (SEZs) have attracted a total investment capital of 1.15 billion U.S. dollars since their operational inception in 2006, according to a government report on Wednesday.

Since 2006 to 2011, the zones have received 96 investment projects with the total capital of 1.15 billion U.S. dollars, according to the record of the Council for the Development of Cambodia (CDC).

It added that the zones had created 61,400 jobs.

Sok Chenda Sophea, the CDC's Secretary General, attributed the investment growth into the SEZs to the country's preferential investment law and low labor cost. "Cambodia's law is very open and gives a lot of fringe benefits to investors," he told a seminar Wednesday.

SEZs have been firstly established in Cambodia in December, 2005 in order to attract investors to build factories inside and manufacture goods for exports. To date, the CDC has granted licenses to 21 SEZs, however, less than a dozen of them are operational.

Those SEZs are located along the borders with Thailand and Vietnam, and on the outskirts of Phnom Penh as well as in Preah Sihanouk province, where the international port is located.

Currently, products being produced in those SEZs include vehicles and spare parts, garments, bicycles, foot-wears, jewelry packaging, pure drinking water, electric products, sugar and agro- products.

The government sees the SEZs as an important part of the country's economic development as they bring infrastructure, jobs, skills and enhanced productivity, according to the CDC's report.

Investors in the industrial zones will benefit from a number of fiscal incentives, including income tax, customs and VAT benefits.

Cambodia's rice exporters cartel formed

PHNOM PENH, Feb. 5 (Xinhua) -- Some 100 rice exporters and millers have jointly formed a Cambodian Rice Exporters Association in a bid to boost rice export, said the group's newly appointed president on Sunday.

"The aim of the establishment is to unite all rice exporters and millers in order to supply rice in large quantities to foreign buyers," said Lim Bunheng, who is also chairman of a leading rice exporter Loran Import-Export.

"With the association, we dare to sign contracts with foreign buyers in large amount purchase orders," he said, adding "the association will contribute to the government's scheme to export one million tons of milled rice by 2015."

The Cambodian Rice Exporters Association was officially launched on Feb. 2, he said.

Cambodia is an agrarian country. More than 80 percent of the population is farmers. In August, 2010, the government has launched the rice export promotion strategy, aiming at exporting one million tons of milled rice by 2015.

However, the country can export only the small amount of its milled rice due to the lack of sophisticated post-harvesting technology and capital.

It's estimated that the country needs roughly 350 million U.S. dollars to invest in hi-tech post harvest technology and to purchase paddy rice from farmers for processing to achieve its self-imposed target of one-million-ton rice exports by 2015.

According to the figures of the Commerce Ministry, Cambodia had exported 170,770 tons of milled rice last year, an increase of 22 percent, from 140,300 tons in a year earlier. With the exported volume, the country earned the total revenues of 104 million U.S. dollars in 2011, up 197 percent from 35 million U.S. dollars in 2010, it said.

Cambodia's insurance industry earns 29.7 mln USD, up 19 pct in 2011

PHNOM PENH, Feb. 6 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia's nascent insurance industry had earned the total premium revenues of 29.7 million U.S. dollars last year, a 19 percent rise from 24.9 million U.S. dollars in a year earlier, according to the industry report on Monday.

The revenues came mainly from fire insurance of 26 percent, followed by motor insurance of 19 percent, miscellaneous insurance of 17 percent, health insurance 15 percent and engineering 13 percent, said the report of the General Insurance Association of Cambodia (GIAC).

Despite growing premiums, the sector has seen a big loss last year because a few garment factories had been destroyed by fire.

"The claim amount had amounted to 33.5 million U.S. dollars last year, increased by 178 percent year-on-year," the GIAC's chairman Chhay Rattanak said Monday.

He forecast that the industry could grow about 20 percent this year thanks to growing economic activities.

Cambodia has six insurance companies -- Forte Insurance, CAMINCO, Asia Insurance, Campubank Lonpac, Infinity Insurance, and Cambodia-Vietnam Insurance. Also, there is one domestic reinsurance company.

To date, the country has not yet had life insurance firm even if, in August last year, the Finance Ministry and four private companies signed a joint venture agreement to establish the country's first-ever life insurance firm.

Cambodian PM gives green light for coal-fired power plant

PHNOM PENH, Feb. 6 (Xinhua) -- Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen on Monday gave the green light to a Cambodian and Thai joint venture firm to begin a feasibility study for the construction of a 1,800 megawatt coal-fired power plant in Koh Kong province, some 271 kilometers Southwest of Cambodia.

The premier expressed his support for the mega-project during a meeting with Noppol Milinthanggoon, managing director of Thailand 's Ratchaburi Electricity Generating Holding Plc., and Cambodian tycoon and Senator Ly Yong Phat, president of Cambodian partner firm Koh Kong Electricity.

"The project will provide benefits for both Cambodia and Thailand as the two countries are much in need of energy for the development," said Hun Sen.

He recommended the firm to employ an independent company to conduct the environment impact assessment on the project to ensure that it will have minimum impacts on environment.

Meanwhile, Noppol Milinthanggoon said the Ratchaburi Electricity Generating Holding Plc is a leading Thai electricity firm and is listed in the Stock Exchange of Thailand in 2000.

He said the firm has successfully invested in power plants in Laos, adding that the would-be coal-fired power plant in Koh Kong bordering Thailand's Trat province will be built by using sophisticated technology and can be ensured that there will be no impact on environment.

The expected electricity will be sold to Cambodia and exported to Thailand with competitive prices, he said.

During the meeting, Noppol had not disclosed the investment cost for the project.

Electricity shortage is one of the main obstacles for Cambodia in attracting foreign investors. Currently, China is leading in the investments in building electricity power plants in this Southeast Asian nation.

Cambodian FM highly evaluates his visit to China

PHNOM PENH, Feb. 7 (Xinhua) -- Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Hor Namhong said on Tuesday night that his 3-day visit to China had concluded successfully, deepening Sino- Cambodian long standing ties.

"The visit has produced good results because China is Cambodia 's close friend," he told reporters at the Phnom Penh International Airport upon his return, adding "it has deepened Sino-Cambodian long-standing relations and cooperation."

He said during the visit, Chinese foreign minister Yang Jiechi had promised to continue financing to Cambodia for infrastructure development projects, which are important to boost the country's economic growth.

Besides bilateral issues, Hor Namhong said he had talked with Yang about the issues of South China Sea and other regional and international issues.

During his in China, the minister had also met with Jia Qinglin, chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), and visited the ASEAN- China Centre.

Cambodia's tuberculosis prevalence rate declines sharply in last decade: new survey

PHNOM PENH, Feb. 8 (Xinhua) -- The tuberculosis prevalence rate in Cambodia has seen a 36 percent decline in the last decade, according to a new survey released on Wednesday.
The preliminary results of the 2nd Cambodia national TB prevalence survey found that about 171 people among 100,000 people have smear-positive tuberculosis in 2011, a 36 percent drop from 269 people among 100,000 people in 2002.
"Cambodia has seen a great success in fighting against TB in the last decade; however, the country is still one of the highest TB burden in the region and the world," Mao Tan Eang, director of National Centre for Tuberculosis and Leprosy Control (CENAT) said at the survey launch.
He said the country spends around 10 million U.S. dollars a year for TB fight, adding that Cambodia has been facing a budget shortage between 30-40 percent in 2012 and 2013 due to the Global Fund's fund cancellation.
Yasujiro Suzuki, chief representative of Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), said the survey had been conducted for one-year by testing approximately 37,413 people across the country, adding it cost one million U.S. dollars.
Speaking at the survey launch, Mam Bunheng, minister of health, said that the results demonstrated the effect of curing TB in Cambodia.
He added that according to the latest figures, the death rate from TB had also sharply declined from 153 deaths among 100,000 patients in 1990 to 61 deaths in 2010.
"With these results, Cambodia has been keeping on track to achieve the United Nations Millennium Development Goal targets by reducing TB prevalence, incidence and mortality rates by a half in 2015," he said.

Cambodia's trade with Thailand grows 21 pct in 2011 after border dispute eased

PHNOM PENH, Feb. 8 (Xinhua) -- The bilateral trade between Cambodia and Thailand increased 21 percent in the past year after the two country's border dispute eased.
The two-way trades had amounted to 3.08 billion U.S. dollars in 2011, a 21 percent rise from 2.54 billion U.S. dollars in a year earlier, according to the statistics provided by Thai embassy in Phnom Penh on Wednesday.
Of the figures, Thailand exported to Cambodia was 2.9 billion U. S. dollars last year, up 24 percent from 2.34 billion U.S. dollars in a year earlier, whilst Cambodia exported to Thailand was just 176 million U.S. dollars, down 18 percent from 214.7 million U.S. dollars.
Thailand's main products exported to Cambodia include vehicles, petroleum, processed goods, building materials, fruits, and vegetables, and Cambodia primarily exports agricultural products, second hand garments, recyclable metal, and fish to Thailand.
"The two countries' trade growth has been bouncing back after it had slowed down in the first half of last year due to border dispute," Jiranan Wongmongkol, director of the Thai Embassy's Foreign Trade Promotion Office in Phnom Penh, said Wednesday."We expect to see at least another 20 percent growth this year as the two countries' relations have currently seen significant improvement."
Meanwhile, Jiranan announced Wednesday in a press briefing that Thailand will host a large scale Thai Products Expo in Phnom Penh on Feb. 16-19.
It will be the first time since the two countries had fierce border fighting in early last year and Cambodia decided to postpone Thai expo since last May.
Cambodia and Thailand have had sporadic border conflict over territorial dispute near Cambodia's Preah Vihear temple since the UNESCO listed the temple as a World Heritage Site on July 7, 2008 and witnessed fierce border fighting in February and April last year during the Thai's Democrat-led administration.
However, the military tension has eased since the former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra's Pheu Thai Party won a landslide victory in the general elections in July last year.

Francophone countries' parliamentarians gather in Cambodia to strengthen cooperation

PHNOM PENH, Feb. 8 (Xinhua) -- Some 30 parliamentarians from 13 French-speaking countries met here on Wednesday for boosting friendship relations and cooperation.
The 3-day meeting would discuss ways to enhance human rights respect, women and children rights, democracy, rule of law, drug combat, and HIV/AID fight. Also, it would talk about helping sustain the economic and social development of respective countries.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, the President of Cambodian National Assembly, Heng Samrin said that the meeting was very important to bridge closer ties among French speaking countries.
It was also significant to discuss and exchange views on social and economic development in respective countries, he said.
The participating countries include Cambodia, Burkina Faso, Canada, Congo, Belgium, France, Luxembourg, Switzerland, Laos, Vietnam, and others.

Cambodia attracts 7.01 bln USD investments in 2011, up 160 pct

PHNOM PENH, Feb. 8 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia had issued licenses to 164 domestic and foreign investment projects worth 7.01 billion U. S. dollars last year, a 160 percent rise from 2.69 billion U.S. dollars with 102 projects in a year earlier, showed the government reports on Wednesday.
The reports, recorded by the Council for the Development of Cambodia (CDC), said that in 2011, England was the largest investor here with the two projects in the total promised investment of 2.24 billion U.S. dollars. The projects are a nitrogen chemical and fertilizer plant and a garment factory.
The domestic investors came at the second with 31 projects in a total investment of 1.93 billion U.S. dollars, and China at third with 22 projects worth 1.19 billion U.S. dollars.
It added that Vietnam and China's Hong Kong stood at number 4 and 5 with 631 million U.S. dollars and 330 million U.S. dollars respectively.
The reports noted that Cambodian investors put their ventures in rubber processing plants, construction material factories, telecommunication tower development and maintenance, real estate development, hotel and tourism, granite processing factory, metal ore exploitation, garment and footwear factories, and beer and soft drink manufacturing industry.
Whilst China had invested in the sectors of property development, mineral business and processing plants, motorcycle assembly factories, gold mining, rice mill and garment factories.

Cambodia receives 24.68 bln USD foreign investment in 17 years

PHNOM PENH, Feb. 8 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia attracted foreign investment of about 24.68 billion U.S. dollars in the last 17 years, according to the Council of Development of Cambodia (CDC) on Wednesday.

The report showed that from 1994 to 2011, China was the largest investor with 8.91 billion U.S. dollars, followed by South Korea ( 4.04 billion U.S. dollars) and Malaysia (2.61 billion U.S. dollars) .

The United Kingdom and the United States stood fourth and fifth with 2.39 billion U.S. dollars and 1.28 billion U.S. dollars respectively.

In addition, Vietnam and Thailand ranked sixth and eighth with 1.2 billion U.S. dollars and 746 million U.S. dollars respectively.

Japan, one of Cambodia's key donors, stood at number 14 in terms of investment with the capital injection of 154 million U.S. dollars into Cambodia in the last 17 years.

The sectors foreign investment were attracted are garment, manufacturing, agriculture, tourism, energy, mining, real estate, transport and telecommunication.

ASEAN member states invest 880 mln USD in Cambodia last year

PHNOM PENH, Feb. 9 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia has attracted fixed asset investments of 880 million U.S. dollars from its ASEAN member states in 2011, according to a government report on Thursday.
Vietnam is the largest investor with the promised investment of 631 million U.S. dollars in 17 projects, following by Malaysia with 235 million U.S. dollars in six projects and Singapore 14 million U.S. dollars in one project, said the statistics of the Council for the Development of Cambodia (CDC).
It added that Vietnam's investment projects are in the fields of rubber plantation and processing and metal ore exploitation, Malaysia in the sectors of real estate, clothes manufacturing and rice milling, and Singapore in a five-star hotel development.
The report recorded that from 1994 to 2011, the ASEAN countries investing in Cambodia have only been Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand and Singapore.
During the past 17 years, Malaysia's accumulative investments in Cambodia have amounted to 2.61 billion U.S. dollars; Vietnam 1. 2 billion U.S. dollars; Thailand 746 million U.S. dollars; and Singapore 649 million U.S. dollars.
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

Cambodia’s FM heads to China to boost bilateral, ASEAN-China ties

     PHNOM PENH, Feb. 5 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia’s Deputy Prime Minister and minister of foreign affairs and international cooperation Hor Namhong left Cambodia on Sunday morning for a 3-day visit in China.

   The visit aimed at cementing Cambodia-China ties and ASEAN-China relations, said a press release of the ministry of foreign affairs.

   At the Phnom Penh International Airport, the minister was seen off by Chinese ambassador to Cambodia Pan Guangxue and other senior officials at the ministry.   

   “Cambodia and China have had very close and special relations and cooperation since the past to the present. The visit is to deepen the friendship relations,” Hor Namhong told reporters before his departure.

   During the stay in China, he said that he will hold talks with Chinese foreign minister Yang Jiechi on bilateral, regional and international issues; then, he will pay courtesy calls on China’s top leaders.

   In addition, the minister will deliver a speech on the ASEAN-China relations at the ASEAN-China Center and visit a Cultural Center.

   Cambodia is the chair of ASEAN in 2012. With the chairmanship, the country pledged to strengthen closer ties and cooperation between ASEAN and China.

   The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. 

Cambodian FM to visit China to boost ties

PHNOM PENH, Feb. 2 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia's Deputy Prime Minister Hor Namhong, who is also a minister of foreign affairs and international cooperation, will lead a delegation to visit China on Feb. 5-7 in order to strengthen bilateral ties and ASEAN- China relations, according to the ministry's press release on Thursday.
The visit is made at the invitation of Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi.
During the visit, Hor Namhong will hold talks with Yang Jiechi on some bilateral and international issues, said the press release.
The minister will deliver a speech on the ASEAN-China relations at the ASEAN-China Center. He will also meet with some other Chinese high-ranking officials.
Cambodia is the chair of ASEAN in 2012. With the chairmanship, the country pledged to strengthen closer ties and cooperation between ASEAN and China.
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.