Government

The government cancelled two concessions for offshore oil – Block B and Block F – held by two foreign companies last year because they failed to comply with the terms of their agreements, senior officials from Ministry of Mines and Energy (MME) told Khmer Times ...

Prime Minister Hun Sen on Friday announced the creation of a committee tasked with putting an end to the rampant illegal logging and cross-border timber smug­­gling taking place in the country’s northeast.   លោកនាយករដ្ឋម ន្រ្តីហ៊ុនសែន នៅថ្ងៃសុក្រនេះ បានប្រកាស ការបង្កើតនៃ គណៈកម្មាធិ ការបញ្ចប់ ការកាប់ឈើខុសច្បាប់ ទោរទន់ រត់ពន្ធ និងជាកន្លែង ទទួលយក ឈើ ...

In an effort to standardise wedding rituals, Cambodia’s achars, or laymen who carry out Buddhist rites of passage, have been invited to a 10-day training course next month in the capital, the Ministry of Cults and Religion announced last week. ...

Cambodia signed an agreement with Vietnam and Laos during a meeting on Thursday to enhance efforts to fight human trafficking—with Vietnam reporting at the meeting that police discovered nearly 90 human trafficking rings along its border with Cambodia last year. ...

Cambodia has been invited to join the Washington-brokered Transpacific Trade Partnership (TPP), which has been described as a deal that will create the largest free-trade zone in the world if it is implemented, a senior official from the Ministry of Economy and Finance said. ...

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry will pay an official visit to Cambodia later this month to boost bilateral ties, Cambodia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Saturday.   ...

The government has announced several amendments to the troubled Traffic Law which, according to National Police spokesman Kirt Chantharith, will be fully enforced starting March 15. ...

The National Assembly on Thursday passed an accounting and auditing law that aims to bring financial reporting procedures for the government, NGOs and the private sector in line with international standards. ...

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.   ...

With social media increasingly becoming the focal point of political discourse in the country, and the prime minister threatening to take legal action against those who insult him online, the opposition CNRP has issued an appeal to its supporters urging them not to publicly insult ...

Importers can expect a substantial increase in the “specific tax” component of certain products, especially automobiles and auto spare parts, according to a sub-decree by the Customs and Excise Department released yesterday. ...

Almost a year after the creation of the new National Election Committee (NEC), its nine members will meet on Friday to select a new secretary-general, the person who will implement its reform agenda ahead of elections in 2017 and 2018. . ...

The draft law to join the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank passed the National Assembly yesterday with lawmakers from both the ruling and opposition party supporting it, saying it will  open the door to a new source of funding for the development of the Kingdom’s ...

Officials from the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts expressed grave concerns yesterday over damage caused to remote heritage and conservation sites at their annual review meeting in Phnom Penh. ...

Due to the lack of qualified personnel to evaluate new patents and enforce the existing law, the Industry Ministry is cooperating with the European Patent Office to enhance their capacity so that Cambodia can better ensure protection of patents to draw more investment, Industry Minister ...

The government collected about $1.3 billion in tax revenue in 2015, a 21.67 percent increase over the previous year, according to a statement released by the Ministry of Economy and Finance’s general department of taxation on Monday. ...

Government ministries were yesterday urged to continue their efforts in shifting responsibilities towards local authorities at an annual meeting to discuss ongoing decentralisation reforms, reforms one top official called key to the ruling party’s upcoming election hopes. ...

In its own decentralisation efforts, the Ministry of Education has delegated authority over the issuing of licences to pre-schools to provincial- and city-level education departments, Minister of Education Hang Chuon Naron said yesterday. ...

Cambodians passing on their property to relatives will no longer have to pay the requisite registration tax, the government announced on Sunday during the ruling CPP’s annual party congress.The directive, signed by Prime Minister Hun Sen, was posted to both the the premier’s personal Facebook ...

The watchdog coalition Electoral Reform Alliance (ERA) yesterday voiced concern after the National Election Committee short-listed its incumbent secretary-general Tep Nytha as a candidate to hold the position, accusing the nine-member body of lacking transparency in its selection process. ...

The National Bank of Cambodia (NBC) is requiring financial institutions to gradually phase in a higher liquidity coverage ratio (LCR) to ensure sustainable growth in the industry and avoid crises.  ...

In the aftermath of the 2013 election, Prime Minister Hun Sen ordered his colleagues in the ruling CPP to stand before a mirror and cleanse themselves of the sins that had almost allowed a united opposition led by Sam Rainsy and Kem Sokha to sweep ...

Thanks to improved collection efforts, a total of $34.7 million in taxes was taken in from Cambodia’s casinos in 2015, a 33 percent increase on the previous year, the Finance Ministry said on Monday. Ros Phearun, deputy director-general of the ministry’s finance industry department, said ...

The draft Coastal Master Plan is likely to get approval from the Ministry of Tourism and other ministries in the middle of this year, while Otres Beach has been selected by the ministry as the template ensuring bays and beaches are environmentally friendly in order ...