In a frank rebuke of members of his own party, Minister of Interior Sar Kheng yesterday accused national leaders and ministers of impeding the process of decentralising Cambodia’s government out of a desire to maintain power for themselves. ...

Australian mining firm Emerald Resources announced yesterday that it was making positive progress towards full licensing and funding of its Okvau gold mine project in Mondulkiri province, with the licence expected as early as the next few weeks. ...

The government has decided to transfer nearly 100 hectares of land on Koh Sdach island in Koh Kong province’s Kiri Sakor district to local residents, who were concerned they would be forced to relocate by development companies. ...

Fishermen on the Tonle Sap river are smelling success: The season’s first harvest of the fish now being crushed into the famously pungent prahok has hauled in a bounty set to almost double last year’s catch. ...

Heng Ratana said yesterday that CMAC would also carry out minefield information research and education programmes this year, as well as strengthen volunteer networks in 700 villages and provide job training to people disabled as a result of landmines. ...

China Energy Engineering Corp Ltd will be conducting a second feasibility study on producing safe drinking water from the Kamchay hydropower dam in Kampot province after the first study showed that production costs were higher than initially expected. ...

The New Year brought a new wave of evictions and development to more than 5 square kilometres on Preah Sihanouk province’s Ochheuteal Beach, though local authorities remain in the dark about what company is behind the development. ...

A study of the mass administration of anti-malarial drugs in two provinces of Cambodia has shown the challenges that surface during such interventions, including the spread of “rumours” among villagers, which can decrease participation, new research shows. ...

A representative of more than 100 families involved in a land dispute with a rubber company is seeking the help of a local rights group after being ordered to appear before the Oddar Meanchey Provincial Court on Friday. ...

Prime Minister Hun Sen applauded the upcoming meeting between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on Saturday, offering his congratulations to the odd couple at the fourth annual River Festival in Kandal province.​ ...

Annual reports from two ministries released on Monday appear to show significantly different numbers of factories, enterprises and garment factory workers in Cambodia last year, and officials at the two ministries contacted yesterday did not explain the contradictory data. ...

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is planning to establish a new $60 million program focused on developing local technical skills and increasing the competitiveness of Cambodia’s labour force in 2019, according to Minister of Labour Ith Sam Heng. ...

The Cambodian riel accounted for about 17 percent of total currency circulation last year, a number similar to previous years, but central bank officials said they remained optimistic that use of the local currency will grow in the future. ...

Hundreds of leading Chinese companies will come together with hundreds more local companies today at the first Cambodia-China Business Forum and Financial Development Forum in Phnom Penh, aimed at expanding trade and investment between the two countries. ...

Cambodia exported more than 108,000 tonnes of sand to India in 36 separate shipments between 2013 and 2015, according to Indian customs data obtained yesterday, contradicting Cambodian customs data that show no sand being sent there at all. ...

At a press conference yesterday, NEC member and spokesman Hang Puthea said that in the process of posting the voter list to the website, the committee encountered two major problems – a slow access speed and an invasion by hackers. ...

Locals in Siem Reap province’s Kralanh district and Banteay Meanchey’s Preah Netr Preah district yesterday alleged that a sand-dredging company is polluting a river that straddles the two districts and stoking fears of bank collapse. ...

Cambodia is expecting a shipment of military vehicles donated by South Korea, according to a sub-decree. The Ministry of Finance in December released about $1 million to the Defence Ministry to cover the equipment’s transportation, it says.​ ...

Fifteen national and international organizations representing 38 civil society groups met with the National Assembly’s first commission yesterday to discuss eight major land dispute cases in an effort to find a solution for those affected.   ...

Mondulkiri provincial environment officials and National Military Police early yesterday morning confiscated a seemingly abandoned Toyota Land Cruiser loaded with more than 10 poles of luxury thnong timber in the Keo Seima Wildlife Sanctuary, though no arrests were made. ...