The amount of land used to grow longans has doubled in the past two years, but a lack of supply-chain infrastructure is hampering farmers’ ability to get top dollar for their product, the fruit’s body says. Sreng Sreang, deputy director of the Pailin Longan Farmers’ Community href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/longans-longing-for-storage/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...

Some 400 students, monks and activists were stopped from a peaceful march for Environmental Day on Thursday, as they sought to deliver petitions to the Ministry of Environment and other institutions calling for an end to deforestation. Cambodia’s forests provide many services to the rural poor, href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/march-for-the-environment-halted-by-police/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...

An opposition lawmaker-elect pledged yesterday to visit an undemarcated section of the border in Svay Rieng province to investigate allegations that Cambodian farmers have been blocked by Vietnamese soldiers from using land they previously farmed for years without problem. Svay Rieng lawmaker-elect Real Camerin said that href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/cnrp-lawmaker-elect-to-visit-contested-area/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...

The families of four people from Pailin province’s Krinh village who have been incarcerated since March for allegedly living on state land are calling for their release. Fifty-year-old Nheb Nharn said that he and his wife, Om Som Ath, had lived on the land in Stung href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/release-our-relatives-evictees/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...

The Cambodia Red Cross donated a total of 140 million riel, or about $35,000, to 37 security guards that were injured after being beaten on Tuesday by opposition protesters demanding the opening of Freedom Park, officials said Wednesday. Kim Vutha, chief of the Daun Penh district href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/red-cross-donates-35k-to-injured-security-guards/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...

A company that villagers say owns land that was illegally grabbed from them in Kandal province asked more than 100 residents of Ponhea Leu commune to leave the firm out of their dispute and focus their ire on Phanimex, which is owned by powerful businesswoman href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/companies-squabble-villagers-protest-in-kandal/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...

Cambodia’s Foreign Minister Hor Namhong will attend ASEAN meetings next week in Nay Pyi Taw of Myanmar, according to a statement issued Friday by Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation. The statement said the meetings to be held from 8 to 10 August, 2014 include href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/hor-namhong-to-attend-asean-meetings-next-week-in-myanmar/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...

The National Election Committee (NEC) on Tuesday called on political parties to send in lists of proposed candidates who wish to be considered in the upcoming municipal, provincial, city and district council elections, which are scheduled for May 18. NEC President Im Suosdey said at a href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/nec-calls-for-council-election-candidates/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...

Cambodia is forecast to receive 4.7 million foreign visitors in 2014, an estimated rise of 12 percent from 4.2 million in 2013, Minister of Tourism Thong Khon said Wednesday. Last year, the country’s tourism generated 2.5 billion U.S. dollars, contributing about 16 percent to the GDP, href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/cambodia-predicts-12-pct-growth-in-tourism-this-year-minister/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...

The Committee for Free and Fair Election in Cambodia (Comfrel) urged the 55 lawmakers of Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) to join the National Assembly in order to reform the National Election Committee (NEC). “Lawmakers of CNRP have to join the National Assembly, or there href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/ngos-urge-cnrp-to-end-parliamentary-boycott/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...

Four days of high-level policy meetings between the European Union and Cambodia wrapped up in Brussels yesterday, after seeing “frank and in-depth exchanges” on a number of issues, including human rights, according to an EU press statement released last night. Ahead of the meeting of href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/eu-concludes-frank-talks-on-rights-reform/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...

The Areng Chorng ethnic minority group yesterday submitted five petitions – addressed to the UN office in Cambodia and four government institutions – seeking a halt to the Sinohydro dam project in Koh Kong province. After blocking Sinohydro from entering the dam site in the Areng href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/ethnic-group-petitions-un-to-halt-areng-dam/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...

Cambodia’s Angkor Wat temple, a world heritage site, had attracted 778,740 foreign visitors in the first quarter of 2014, up 12 percent compared to the same period last year, official data showed Wednesday. The top five countries visiting the site are South Korea, China, Vietnam, Japan href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/foreign-tourists-to-cambodias-angkor-heritage-site-up-12-pct-in-q1/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...

A private utilities company owned by wealthy businessman and ruling Cambodian People’s Party Senator Kok An is fulfilling only about half of Poipet’s demand for clean water, despite being contracted to supply the whole town, according to the city governor. With priority for the distribution of href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/poipet-poor-bearing-brunt-of-water-woes/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...

Foreign and domestic investment in construction projects skyrocketed in the first four months of the year, government data suggests. Ministry of Land Management and Urban Planning data revealed last week shows total investment in new construction projects reached more than $1.4 billion at the end of href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/construction-raking-in-cash/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...

A second deadly car accident in as many days has claimed the lives of more Cambodian migrant workers fleeing Thailand in the wake of last month’s military takeover. At least two undocumented Cambodian workers were killed while driving through Thailand’s Chonburi province to get to the href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/border-chaos-claims-2-more/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...

A distinctive new wolf snake species discovered in Cambodia has been named in honour of Zoos Victoria, recognising their support provided to Fauna & Flora International’s (FFI) studies in the Cardamom Mountains over the last few years. The wolf snake is the latest species to be href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/new-wolf-snake-discovered-in-cambodia/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...

Police and court officials on Wednesday searched the home of villager Oum Sophy, who has been outspoken opponent of the well-connected KDC company as it has tried to push her and dozens of her neighbors off their land in Kompong Chhnang province. The raid came after href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/officials-raid-villagers-home-in-kdc-dispute/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...

Drug-resistant malaria is now widespread in Southeast Asia, seriously threatening global efforts to control malaria, a new study warned Wednesday. An analysis of blood samples from 1,241 malaria patients in 10 countries across Asia and Africa found resistance to the world’s most effective anti-malarial drug, artemisinin, href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/drug-resistant-malaria-widespread-in-southeast-asia-study/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...

The Foreign Affairs Ministry on Friday defended the Cambodian Embassy and consulates in China, which have been accused of ignoring female citizens in peril there, and said it has made efforts to cut off the flow off women being sold into brothels or forced marriages. In href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/ministry-says-it-is-making-efforts-to-stop-abuse/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...