About 300 cubic metres of luxury timber is being felled every dAy And trAnsported on boAts to VietnAm And ThAilAnd from four districts in Koh Kong province, According to An investigAtion by A locAl rights group. CheA HeAn, director of the NAturAl Resource And Wildlife PreservAtion <A href='https://opendevelopmentcAmbodiA.net/news/luxury-wood-chArge-floAted/ ' clAss='cAmbodiA-color'>...A>

The International Labour Organisation’s Better Factories Cambodia program (BFC) releases the first report from its mobile phone call-in project aimed at educating garment and footwear workers. The mobile phone project entitled Kamako Chhnoeum (‘Outstanding Worker’ in Khmer) received 3,245 valid phone calls in its first two <a href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/ilo-bfc-unveils-worker-mobile-phone-call-in-project-report/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...a>

As the cost of imports rise, locAl producers could see An opportunity to increAse their mArket shAre, but for most A lAck of output And quAlity meAns potentiAl is limited, industry observers sAid yesterdAy. Customs officers who hAd often undercut the officiAl rAte Are now <A href='https://opendevelopmentcAmbodiA.net/news/locAl-production-still-lAgging/ ' clAss='cAmbodiA-color'>...A>

The European Commission’s proposed ban on fish imports from Cambodia would cause no harm to the country’s fish exports since it has never sold fish to European countries, a Cambodian fisheries chief said Wednesday. “The sanctions, announced by the European Commission on Tuesday, do not affect <a href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/eus-fish-import-ban-not-harming-cambodias-export-official/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...a>

While more Japanese companies are flocking to Cambodia for investments in recent years, they are more diversified, ranging from restaurants to manufacturing industries and electronics. Yoshihito Katsuo, first secretary in charge of trade at the Japanese embassy in Phnom Penh, told Kyodo News on Friday that <a href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/japan-diversifies-cambodia-investments/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...a>

The Cambodian People’s Party is declaring victory in a round of sub-national elections that were held Sunday, but observers say the latest polls diminished some of the ruling party’s power at the grassroots. The CPP on Monday claimed 2,543 seats in leadership positions at the city, <a href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/cpp-grassroots-diminished-in-election-observers-say/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...a>

With Thailand and Cambodia both feeling the pinch from the sudden exodus of more than 200,000 Cambodian workers out of Thailand, the two countries are now working together to try and get them back to their old jobs legally, as fast as possible. Some 225,000 Cambodians, <a href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/govt-begins-effort-to-send-workers-back-to-thailand/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...a>

Y Chhien, who has served as the governor of Pailin province since former Khmer Rouge Foreign Minister Ieng Sary led his rebel forces in the area to defect to the government in 1996, will step down from his position on Saturday, his cabinet chief said <a href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/y-chhien-to-be-replaced-as-pailin-governor/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...a>

The government must amend legislation to stamp out hate crimes and discrimination against Cambodia’s gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender citizens, rights activists said during a forum in the capital yesterday. During the second day of the first community dialogue dedicated to the advancement and discussion <a href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/lgbt-advocates-seek-equality/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...a>

The Cambodian government must immediately and unconditionally release the 21 garment workers and human rights defenders who have been detained since early January, FIDH and its member organizations Cambodian Human Rights and Development association (aDHOC) and Cambodian League for the Promotion and Defense of Human <a href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/cambodia-bail-refused-for-21-workers-and-human-rights-defenders/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...a>

A government spokesmAn wArned yesterdAy thAt legAl Action mAy be tAken AgAinst the opposition leAders if their “unlAwful” cAmpAign rhetoric incites unrest. Tith SotheA, spokesmAn for the Council of Ministers’ Press And Quick ReAction Unit, sAid thAt the government will consider filing complAints AgAinst CAmbodiA NAtionAl <A href='https://opendevelopmentcAmbodiA.net/news/cnrp-threAtened-over-rhetoric/ ' clAss='cAmbodiA-color'>...A>

The management of the 32-storey De Castle Royal condominium project in BKK1 has announced that the The Place, widely regarded as Phnom Penh’s only independent five-star gym, will manage the development’s fitness centre. This means the air-conditioned De Castle Royal gym will be fully fitted out <a href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/de-castle-royal-partners-with-the-place-for-first-class-gym-workout/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...a>

CBRE Cambodia’s latest MarketView report sees strong growth in Cambodia’s international tourism sector, with particularly strong in international arrivals resulting in growth in hotel occupancy rates and durations of stay. according to the May report, international arrivals in 2013 increased 17.5 per cent, to a total <a href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/new-report-sees-strong-tourism-growth/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...a>

National assembly President Heng Samrin has given himself the power to deny access to the assembly compound, including the offices of all lawmakers, to anyone not employed by the government and has barred all private citizens from testifying before&mdash;or sitting in on&mdash;assembly commission meetings. In <a href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/rule-changes-give-assembly-president-broad-new%e2%80%88powers/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...a>

Grand Twins International (GTI), one of two listed firms on the Cambodian Stock Exchange, has blamed third-quarter revenue losses on garment-worker demonstrations in December and January. On November 21, GTI posted a 40 per cent decline in revenue to $10.9 million for the three-month period ending <a href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/grand-twins-revenue-plunges/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...a>

The China Railway Corporation is conducting a feasibility study on the construction of an expressway linking the capital with Bavet, in the border with Vietnam, according to the Ministry of Public Works and Transport. The study will take eight months to complete, Minister of Public <a href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/new-study-on-phnom-penh-bavet-expressway/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...a>

Delegates from the Shandong provincial standing committee have expressed strong interest in investing in Kratie province’s agricultural sector, provincial governor Va Thorn told The Post on Monday. “The Chinese delegation inspected the Snuol Special Economic Zone [SEZ] as they have expressed interest in investing in a <a href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/chinas-shandong-eyes-investment-in-agriculture-in-kratie/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...a>

Cambodia Chamber of Commerce (CCC) president Kith Meng on Tuesday called for stronger business and investment relations between the Kingdom and South Korea. He was speaking on the sidelines of the World Summit 2020 in Seoul, South Korea, after a meeting between the Korea International <a href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/hun-sen-to-south-koreans-invest-in-the-kingdom/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...a>

The Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU) hAs lAunched A cAmpAign to check the provision of public services during the whole of next yeAr. The cAmpAign will be cArried out At tArgeted service units of sub-nAtionAl level AdministrAtions. The ACU hAs Also tAken further meAsures to strengthen the <A href='https://opendevelopmentcAmbodiA.net/news/Acu-lAunches-cAmpAign-to-check-public-service-provision/ ' clAss='cAmbodiA-color'>...A>

The Ministry of Labour is looking to reduce night shift workers’ wages to bring them in line with day rates. This, it said, will increase Cambodia’s competitiveness. However, unions and workers have slammed the move. Minister of Labour and Vocational Training Ith Sam Heng sent <a href='https://opendevelopmentcambodia.net/news/ministry-looking-to-lower-workers-night-shift-wages/ ' class='cambodia-color'>...a>