Ministries and other national bodies

The train service between Cambodia and Thailand, which was expected to begin operations early this year, seems to be delayed indefinitely due to a contentious one-kilometer stretch of track in Poipet City. ...

An estimated 7.9 million people in Cambodia will be living in urban areas by 2030, up from 4.5 million in 2014, with officials at a forum on national housing yesterday announcing ambitious plans to meet the demand for some 55,000 affordable new homes each year. ...

The head of the Preah Vihear Provincial Department of Mines and Energy admitted to illegally selling a plot of government land for $62,400 in profit at the Phnom Penh Municipal Court yesterday, but called for a lighter sentence, claiming he used the money to help ...

The Kampot Pier Project – a $10 million effort to attract tourists by building a passenger pier – could harm communities due to insufficient consultation, a new NGO report and community representatives claim. ...

The Ministry of Mines and Energy announced that it has granted licenses to four different mining companies to explore for potential mineral resources in Kratie, Kampong Thom, Mondulkiri and Kampot. ...

The central bank hopes to launch its central shared switch mechanism next month after a trial run that has already connected the account records of three of the Kingdom’s leading financial institutions, allowing them to operate ATM and point-of-sale (POS) terminals in tandem, according to ...

Cassava prices in Cambodia experienced a sharp drop this month leading to heavy losses for smallholder farmers unable to quickly switch to more profitable crops and recoup their mounting losses, a provincial agriculture official said yesterday. ...

The central banks of Cambodia and South Korea signed an agreement on Friday to jointly conduct research and analyse the relationship between exchange rates and inflation in the Cambodian economy, according to bank officials. ...

Interior Minister Sar Kheng has vowed an investigation into an alleged arms trafficking operation linked to a Cambodian official, saying information from suspects indicated the guns were smuggled via a “corridor” in Cambodia’s Koh Kong province into Thailand and did not pass through the international ...

The central bank has issued new regulations governing the licensing of payment services providers (PSPs), requiring that all firms providing online services to accept electronic payments have at least $2 million in registered capital, a move expected to increase the stability of the sector and ...

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will investigate exorbitant passport fees for migrant workers in Malaysia, the ministry’s spokesman said late last week, following an investigation by The Post that found Cambodians in the country were forced to pay up to $800 for renewals. ...

More than a month after confirming its investigation into new reports of rampant timber trafficking between Cambodia and Vietnam, the Environment Ministry remains tight-lipped about what—if any—progress it is making, but says the U.K. NGO that exposed the scale of the problem is itself being ...

The National Bank of Cambodia yesterday revoked the licence of Dubai-based Royal Index Pte., an affiliate of Royal Index UAE, after it failed to fulfill its mandatory obligations as a derivatives trading firm operating in the kingdom. ...

Students at schools in Cambodia will learn about the life, achievements and leadership of Prime Minister Hun Sen under a proposal by the Defence Ministry to change the nation’s curriculum and introduce the ruling party’s fiercely contested historical narrative into textbooks. ...

The government is preparing legislation aimed at ensuring tighter control over the nation’s pawnshops to ensure professionalism in a sector that has grown rapidly and lacks a supervisory framework. ...

The government has approved a new round of mass military promotions, elevating 40 officers to the rank of brigadier general and 16 people to major general status. ...

Labour Minister Ith Sam Heng announced yesterday that this year’s round of garment sector minimum wage negotiations would begin in July, with unionists cautiously optimistic that next year’s national elections could benefit their cause despite calls from Sam Heng not to “politicise” the process. ...

Cambodian immigration officer Leang Piseth, who is detained in Thailand on suspicion of smuggling weapons, is a relative by marriage of Defence Minister Tea Banh, as well as of recently reassigned Koh Kong Provincial Governor Bun Leut and retired high-ranking Police General Tham Sann, The ...

The ruling Cambodian People’s Party has canceled plans for failed local election candidates to be appointed to advisory positions in the government. ...

The Land Management Ministry hosted a farewell party for residents of Phnom Penh’s iconic but crumbling White Building Saturday, serving up large quantities of noodles and bringing in Buddhist monks to bless the residents before they move. ...

Cambodia plans to have an ambitious environmental code adopted by the end of this year, according to a legal adviser with the law firm helping to write the legislation, though conservationists yesterday remained wary about how it would be implemented. ...

The Ministry of Commerce and other relevant ministries will meet later this month to review progress on the country’s first consumer protection law and formulate a plan to complete the draft legislation, a ministry official said yesterday. ...

Cambodia’s Ministry of Defence has demanded an apology from Thai media outlets for reports linking Defence Minister Tea Banh to a recent case of alleged cross-border arms smuggling by a Thai air force officer, one which has also ensnared an official from Cambodia’s Interior Ministry ...

The government lifted a 2011 ban on sending Cambodian maids to Malaysia in January, according to a directive Prime Minister Hun Sen signed late last year, contradicting months of government denials. ...