The Grassroots Democracy Party yesterday suggested taking a pin to Cambodia’s inflated bureaucracy, saying it would campaign on a proposal to reduce the number of ministries from 23 to just 15 in order to improve efficiency and cut wasteful spending. ...

Malaysian telecom giant Axiata Group will consider divesting a portion of its stake in Cambodian mobile operator Smart Mobile in a bid to free up capital to “pursue opportunities”, including infrastructure expansion and future acquisitions, a company executive said yesterday. ...

Axiata Group sold a 10 percent stake of its Cambodian subsidiary Smart Axiata to Japanese group Mitsui Co Ltd to form a strategic partnership and further the firm’s activity in the Kingdom, according to a company release on Friday. ...

Police have summoned the CNRP’s top party boss in Phnom Penh to appear for questioning today about a clash between a motorbike driver and a group of opposition supporters campaigning earlier this week in the capital. ...

Taking stock of his party’s June commune elections losses, CNRP president Kem Sokha has embarked on a countrywide tour to gather feedback and intelligence the party can use to steer its national election campaign, party officials said on Tuesday. ...

An opinion piece published by government mouthpiece Fresh News suggests, among other things, dissolving the Cambodia National Rescue Party and allocating its National Assembly seats to five minor parties, including Funcinpec, which plans to sue for the dissolution of CNRP. ...

A company based in China’s southern province of Guangdong opened a 2-hectare market for building and construction materials near the Preah Monivong Bridge in Phnom Penh on Saturday, according to a report by online Chinese news site Commercial News. ...

Bilateral trade between Cambodia and Indonesia amounted to $492.7 million in the first 11 months of last year, a 23 percent increase compared to the same period in 2016, according to a report from an Indonesian state-run news agency. ...

With the National Election Committee (NEC) having released preliminary commune election results, parties have begun registering requests for recounts to the body, with one commune each in Svay Rieng and Battambang provinces appearing to have already flipped sides as of yesterday. ...

Hundreds of riverside families in Tbong Khmum province were on Monday evacuated away from the flooding Mekong River, even as the provinces hit hardest by tropical storm ‘Sonca’ last week returned to normalcy and evacuees shuffled back to their homes. ...

Leaders of the National Election Committee (NEC) who break the law will be removed from their posts by the National Assembly, officials said yesterday. The comments came after a meeting between Cambodian People’s Party and Cambodia National Rescue Party working groups. ...

Hundreds of Vietnamese gamblers trying to get to casinos in Cambodia are testing tightened security at two border gates in Long An Province, and a crackdown at Binh Hiep Border Gate has opened a market for gangs facilitating illegal crossings or bribing guards. ...

In a recent letter to its overseas party branches, the ruling CPP lays out a plan to counter the bad press it gets abroad and beef up its support among the Cambodian diaspora, currently a key source of funds for the opposition. ...

Borith has been on the payroll of Cambodia’s parliament for 15 years but rarely shows up for work. He is busy with his other job at a non-governmental organization, and no one notices his absence. ...

A report released this month by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) suggests that due to Cambodia’s high suitability to solar power, energy from solar panels is a viable and sustainable source of power that could lead to energy independence. ...

Prime Minister Hun Sen yesterday threatened legal action against those who have accused him of using incorrect maps to plant posts along the Kingdom’s border with Vietnam, and called on parties claiming to have the true maps to present them. ...

Low-income factory workers and illiterate citizens risk being left behind in the country’s voter registration process if current policies remain unchanged, Transparency International Cambodia warned yesterday, as it forwarded a list of recommendations to the National Election Commission. ...

Ruling party officials say the opposition is playing a “bad trick” on Cambodians, inciting nationalistic anger with claims of Vietnamese encroachment and accusations that the government is not using the proper maps to demarcate the border. ...

Teho International, developer of the $500 million “The Bay” real estate project in Phnom Penh, reported $5.3 million in losses for the year ending June 2015, in part due to marketing and promotional activities relating to the Cambodian project. ...

A new private-sector energy development is in the pipeline for Koh Rong Sanloem Island with the goal of bringing clean and reliable electricity 24 hours a day to the remote location. ...