The National Assembly of Cambodia approved on 30 November a 2016 defence budget of USD383 million, a 17% increase against spending in 2015. The defence allocation amounts to around 9% of total government expenditure for the year and about 2% of GDP. ...

Investment in the construction sector reached an all-time high last year at almost $3.5 billion, up about 40 percent from the $2.5 billion invested in the sector in 2014, according to data from the Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning, and Construction.   ...

The European Union (EU) last week announced this year’s recipients of 8.2 million euros ($8.9 million) in grants to civil society, with much of the money going to nongovernmental groups whose stated goal is to make the country’s elections more open and inclusive.  ...

JWD InfoLogistics Plc is planning to expand its business to the Cambodian market with the launch a real estate investment trust (REIT) worth 2 billion baht (about $56.4 million) this year to finance its expansion in ASEAN, according to a report in the Bangkok Post. ...

The government has set an annual target of producing 1.2 million tons of fish in farms within the next three years to support high local demand and to reduce the flood of imports from neighboring countries, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. ...

The project Klahan9—from the Khmer word Klahan, meaning “brave”—is a multimedia initiative that aims to help youths make better decisions about their careers. The show is broadcast live on Sundays between 1pm and 2pm on FM103. ...

Revenue from business registration fees rose 13 percent to about $2.4 million in the first 11 months of the year over the same period last year, with 4,076 businesses registering at the Commerce Ministry compared to 3,618 in the year-ago period, the ministry said yesterday. ...

In a bid to reassure European shoppers concerned with unfair labour practices, Germany’s state aid agency GIZ has pledged €1.2 million ($1.3 million) to a new program focused on enhancing Cambodia’s labour inspections system for the garment sector. ...

The total value of exports from the Kingdom’s garment and footwear industry increased sharply this first quarter by 39.1 percent to some $2 billion compared to about $1.5 billion in the same period last year, according to figures released by the Ministry of Commerce. ...

Transparency International (TI) Cambodia yesterday said that the ruling Cambodian People’s Party appeard to have won 49.4 percent of the nationwide popular vote on June 4 based on the stations it monitored, nearly six percentage points ahead of the CNRP’s 43.2 percent. ...

The opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) will file a complaint with the National Election Committee (NEC) this week, alleging that more than 2,000 Vietnamese migrants have illegally registered to vote. According to party spokesperson Yim Sovann, the alleged registrations took place across southern Cambodia. ...

Floodwater released from a hydroelectric dam has completely submerged a Cambodian village, turning it into a “silent waterworld”. The new Lower Sesan 2 Dam has unleashed a deluge of water on Srekor, in the northern province of Stung Treng, according to California-based campaign group International Rivers. ...

The Ministry of Industry and Handicraft will cooperate with two South Korean high-tech companies to establish a technology centre with the aim of facilitating the exchange of information on the development of optic cable technology. ...

Deputy Prime Minister Men Sam An has called for the greater use of local products in the tourism sector, as products from overseas that continue to supply the industry result in a 25 per cent loss in revenue for Cambodia’s US$2 billion-a-year tourism industry. ...

Eight people, four of them children, were killed when fire ripped through Siem Reap City’s popular night market in the early hours of Saturday morning, officials and witnesses said. The fire, which stared at about 2 a.m., left the market completely gutted and damage estimated at ...

Thailand’s Foreign Ministry Permanent Secretary Sihasak Phuangketkeow will visit neighbouring Cambodia this week.   Mr Sihasak, in his capacity as Acting Foreign Minister, is scheduled to visit Phnom Penh on Tuesday and Wednesday July 1 and 2 to deepen bilateral ties between the two nations. ...

A 2-year-old girl from southwestern Kampot province died of H5N1 human avian influenza on Friday, bringing the number of cases to nine so far this year, said a joint statement from the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Cambodian Health Ministry on Monday. ...

Cambodia has granted operating licenses to 2,424 new companies in the first seven months of 2014, up 44 percent compared with 1,688 firms over the same period last year, according to the latest report of the Ministry of Commerce on Tuesday. ...

Following a huge outcry from medical students, the University of Health Sciences agreed yesterday to lower a planned rise in annual tuition for those hoping to pursue a medical specialty beyond their general degree. The students then agreed to accept the rector’s offer of $2,250, ...

A weekslong strike by more than 2,000 workers from a Phnom Penh factory that supplies global fashion brand H&M ended Wednesday after unions scaled down their original demands and backed down over a condition that workers receive their full salaries for the strike period, representatives ...