Ministries and other national bodies

Less than a month after the government announced that more than 170 Montagnard asylum seek­ers would have their refugee applications processed, an Interior Min­istry spokesman said on Wednesday that the group had not met the criteria for refugee status and would be returned to Vietnam. ...

The government is planning to boost Cambodia’s attractiveness as a second-home tourist destination for foreign retirees, according to a draft policy obtained from the Ministry of Tourism Wednesday. ...

With a surge in visitors from the world’s most populous nation, the government is preparing a “second-home policy” to encourage more Chinese tourists to visit and stay longer, and for those who have already visited to do so more often, Deputy Prime Minister Keat Chhon ...

The Ministry of Agriculture’s departments of Forestry and Fisheries will be placed under the control of the provincial agricultural administrations, according to an official letter released by Agricultural Minister Ouk Rabun on Monday. The move is part of an effort to decentralize government responsibilities and ...

More than 30 workers fainted at a garment factory in Kandal prov­ince over the past two days after inhaling noxious fumes circulated by a ventilation fan located near the facility’s toilets, an official said.   ...

Consular officials yesterday were working to repatriate a Cambodian maid fleeing what she described as unfair working conditions in Saudi Arabia, even as Cambodia’s minister of labour was en route to seal a long-awaited deal to open a pipeline of workers to the Gulf nation. ...

India is looking to ease its visa regime for ASEAN nations in a bid to increase Buddhist tourist arrivals – travellers looking to visit Buddhist heritage sites – to the country, India’s vice president said. ...

The cause of death of more than 11,000 diseased broiler chickens found dumped in a canal in Kompong Thom province last month has been identified as an infectious virus transmittable to humans, according to the Ministry of Agriculture’s animal health department. ...

Ministry of Health of Cambodia announced that all guardians ought to bring children to vaccinate (Vaccine) preventing inflammation of the encephalitis, meningitis, hepatitis, polio, measles and rubella. The vaccine for infant is for free. ...

The Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction issued a statement on Saturday defending its track record and denying that Germany ended its support for the ministry’s land rights program due to a lack of transparency and sluggish reform pace. ...

Police working with Ministry of Post and Telecommunications officials yesterday arrested more than 20 South Korean nationals allegedly running an illegal telecom operation, an officer said yesterday, though an embassy representative said the bust related to online gambling.   ...

Officials are attempting to se­cure the release of two Cambo­dian men who were sentenced to three months in a Thai prison on Thursday after being summarily convicted of at­tacking government inspectors at a market in Sa Kaeo province the day before, ac­cording to the Ministry ...

Health Minister Mam Bunheng responded to the Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU) after it received an anonymous complaint that the diet pill MAZETA Slim, which is unlicensed in Cambodia and therefore illegal to sell, is still being distributed by pharmacies around the Kingdom. According to ministry tests, ...

Cambodian exports grew by 17 per cent last year, driven by increases in shipments of rice and footwear, with garment export growth easing to a little under 7 per cent, according to a new Ministry of Commerce report. ...

Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister Sar Kheng said yesterday that his decision regarding a request from the National Police to amend the drug law will depend on the results of a study by the National Authority for Combating Drugs on drug addicts currently serving ...

Public officials and stakeholders drafting new access to information legislation listened yesterday as speakers underlined the importance of incorporating public feedback into the long-awaited law. ...

Cambodian tycoon Kith Meng’s Royal Group failed to persuade a high-level meeting of government and Preah Sihanouk officials to resume construction of a 40-metre port at Otres Beach, and will instead have to explore the use of other locations along the coastline. ...

Following a nationwide spate of violent gun crime over the past few months, the government has called on City Hall for help in its crackdown on illegal firearms, a problem one Ministry of Interior official laid at the feet of authorities themselves. ...

Amid fears that the Zika virus could jump to Southeast Asia after its rapid spread through South America, the Cambodian Ministry of Health has asked citizens to take precautions to avoid mosquito bites. In a press release sent Friday, the ministry urged people to wear ...

Foreign Minister Hor Namhong has called on Cambodia’s ambassadors to lift their professionalism and pay greater attention to the needs of workers abroad. ...

Three months after the Health Ministry proclaimed Cambodia measles-free—after tests on a child suspected to be carrying the disease came back negative—it announced on Wednesday that a 7-month-old in Kompong Speu province has contracted the highly contagious virus. It is the first confirmed case in ...

At the close of the three-day annual Cambodia Rice Forum, Commerce Minister Sun Chanthol on Tuesday suggested that the first-rate rice brand set to be launched on the international market this year be marketed as “Extra Premium” jasmine rice. ...

The Ministry of Mines and Energy has created a committee to resolve compensation and resettlement issues for 1,000 families displaced by the controversial Lower Sesan II hydropower dam in Stung Treng province. ...

A new five-year plan is being drafted to woo more Chinese tourists to the Kingdom, following a surge in visitors from the world’s most populous nation, Tourism Minister Thong Khon said yesterday. /Sum Manet ...