National Assembly of Cambodia. Photo by Sorn Seang Heng, taken on 12 June 2010. Licensed under CC-BY 2.0.With a constitution written a little more than 20 years ago, the current rule of law in Cambodia is relatively new, and continues to be shaped by many ...

Logging truck in Mondulkiri protected forest , Cambodia. Photo by Global Water Forum, taken on 23 February 2014. Licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0Cambodia is deeply concerned about deforestation. While the country seeks fast economic development, forests represent a tremendous national treasure. In order to help ...

There are four major international donors to land rights development and reform in Cambodia: the World Bank, Germany, Finland and Canada. Their support spans multiple programs and several years with the overall objective of improving land tenure security and promoting stable land markets. ...

The Ministry of Environment is the main authority mandated to oversee environmental issues, including protected areas, environmental impact assessments, and management of natural resources. ...

The 7th National Consultation Workshop on the Draft of the Environment and Natural Resource Code of the Kingdom of Cambodia. Photo by Open Development Cambodia, taken on 22 March 2018. Licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.With 76% of its people living in rural areas,73 Cambodia holds ...

The judiciary is one of the three powers, together with the executive (the Government) and legislative (the National Assembly and the Senate), that constitute the state. 105 Its role is to monitor the application of the law and punish its violation. This power is vested ...

Aerial view of Cambodia paddy rice field. Photo by Sai Kwong, taken on 23 October 2010. Licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0.Land lies at the center of debates about Cambodia’s socioeconomic development. For farmers in the fertile lowlands, private land ownership rights have enabled recovery of ...

Trash collection in Siem Reap province, Cambodia. Photo taken by David Villa, taken on 12 January 2008. Licensed under CC BY 4.0 DEED.Solid waste is defined as “used things, materials, or products that remain or are generated from human daily activities and livelihood and do ...

There is no large industrial-scale extraction of minerals carried out in Cambodia yet, but many exploration licenses have been granted and some mining companies have reported promising finds of minerals such as gold. Today companies from China, Korea, Vietnam, Australia and elsewhere are exploring for ...

One of the key goals of the 2030 Agenda is to “decouple economic growth from resource use and environmental degradation”.321 Sustainable consumption and production involves promotion of resource and energy efficiency as well as reduction of economic, social and environmental costs. These are intended to ...

According to the Kingdom of Cambodia’s 2019 general population census, the total Cambodian population is 15,552,211 (51.31% of females).350 By 2021, the population increased to 16,589,023.351 Vietnamese, Chinese, Chams and other minorities also live in the country. Indigenous ethnic groups known as “Khmer Loeu” live ...

Cambodia is known for its rich cultural diversity, including ethnic minorities and indigenous communities. As the country has developed, efforts have been made to recognize and protect these groups’ rights through policies and initiatives to promote inclusivity, preserve cultural heritage, and address issues such as ...

Construction on a Phnom Penh tower block. Photo by Axel Drainville, taken on 4 May 2011. Licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0The construction industry has boomed in Cambodia. From 2000 to November 2018, Cambodia’s Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction approved 43,136 construction projects representing ...

Cambodia is set up as a multi-party democracy under a constitutional monarchy. The King serves as the head of state and the Prime Minister is the head of the Royal Government of Cambodia. Norodom Sihamoni,455 the King, was crowned in 2004 after the abdication of ...

Counting money. Photo by Aaron Gilson, taken on 5 April 2013. Licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.Cambodia re-opened for international trade in the 1980s, opened up to foreign investment in 1994, joined ASEAN in 1999, and became a member of the WTO in 2004. Its bilateral ...

As Cambodia emerged from years of conflict, pressures grew on natural resources and sensitive areas. In response, a number of protected areas were created by royal decree in 1993 to protect ecologically and culturally important places. More detailed guidelines on managing the country’s protected areas ...

Cambodia’s sub-national administration consists of three tiers: capital city/province, municipality/district and sangkat/commune. Phnom Penh is the capital, and there are 24 provinces, 159 districts (including 26 municipalities and 12 khans), 1406 communes and 227 sangkats. ...

Social land concessions (SLCs) are intended to provide to the landless or land-poor land on which to establish residences and/or generate income through agriculture. The Cambodian Government that more than 30,000 households have received land as social land concessions. Despite its pro-poor intention, the SLC ...

Construction of a laboratory funded by Chinese money. Photo by Michael Coghlan, taken on 10 January 2014. Licensed under CC-BY-SA 2.0China, while once being at odds with the current government, is now Cambodia’s largest development partner. The two nations have grown increasingly close in recent ...

Cambodia’s forests have seen a significant reduction of total forest and dense forest cover in recent years, the growth of plantations, particularly rubber, and an ongoing problem with illegal logging. ...