ODC English Site
Corn prices to rise with new Thai policy
Cambodian officials in provinces bordering Thailand said the price of Cambodian corn would increase as a result of a reduced supply and a new Thai government policy of importing more corn for animal processing. The Bangkok Post reported on Tuesday that the Thai cabinet approved the ...
Hundreds of strikers block road in Phnom Penh
More than 700 workers from the International Royal Fashion garment factory, in Phnom Penh’s Dangkor district, blocked the Veng Sreng road yesterday for about four hours to show their dissatisfaction with their employer’s failure to respond to their demands. An International Royal Fashion official, ...
Villagers Still in the Dark About Lower Sesan Hydropower Dam
Thousands of villagers who will lose their land to the construction of the Lower Sesan 2 dam in Stung Treng province later this year have not been told of the government’s plans for their resettlement and compensation, a new study released yesterday shows. Through interviews with ...
Union warns of general strike if wage hike too small
The Cambodian Confederation of Unions warned Thursday of a general strike if proposed increases in monthly salaries are too small. “Cambodia will have a big strike exploding across all clothing and footwear factories if minimum wages are raised by only 10 percent from the basic $61,” ...
Cambodia Angkor Air expands its international network
For a long time, Cambodia’s national carrier Cambodia Angkor Air (CAA) served only as a feeder carrier to its shareholder Vietnam Airlines. Three lines were then in service on routes linking Phnom Penh to Siem Reap, Phnom Penh-Ho Chi Minh City and finally Siem Reap-HCMC. ...
http://www.traveldailynews.asia/news/article/51485/cambodia-angkor-air-expands-its
LED lights’ lure of lower electricity bills
The locally based Global Media Group is bringing the latest LED lighting technology to the Cambodian market in an effort to reduce people’s electricity bills. GMG assistant chief executive Bun Sim said the company would use all its know-how, as well as experts from South Korea, ...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/2013012460969/Business/led-lights-lure-of-lower-electricity-bills.html
Cambodia's 'worst year’ for land disputes
More than 200 people were arrested while defending their land in 2012 – a year human rights groups described yesterday as Cambodia’s “worst” for land disputes. Of the 201 people arrested – a figure that more than doubled the 2011 total – 29 were imprisoned, mostly ...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/2013012460955/National/cambodia-s-worst-year-for-land-disputes.html
Value of construction in Cambodia skyrockets
The amount of money spent on construction in Cambodia soared by 72 per cent in 2012 compared to 2011, according to data from the Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction. The ministry said it had issued 1,694 construction patents covering 6.5 million square metres ...
Interesting times for Phnom Penh office market
Worldwide, office demand stemmed from the automotive, high-tech and energy industries. The latter is evident in Cambodia, where drilling off the coast near Sihanoukville has helped to increase office demand. Thus, companies such as Total and Chevron are large office occupiers, and new Japanese oil ...
After 6 Years, No Solution in Minority's Land Case
Ethnic minority Jarai families in Ratanakkiri province locked in a land dispute with Keat Kolney, the sister of Finance Minister Keat Chhon, yesterday marked the sixth anniversary of inaction in the court compliant they filed accusing Ms. Kolney’s firm of taking 450 hectares of their ...
Cambodian government focuses on fire safety
The Cambodian government is beginning to focus on fire security and intervention systems in skyscrapers, which are on the increase in Phnom Penh. Lieutenant Colonel Neth Vutha, chief of the Fire Station of the Phnom Penh Police Department, said the General Commissariat of the National Police ...
$20m mill will lift rice exports
Cambodian company Soma Group has signed a joint-venture agreement with Thai-based CP Intertrade to build and operate a $20 million rice mill that will process fragrant rice for export. Industry insiders say the mill will increase Cambodia’s rice export capacity and boost the Kingdom’s ability to ...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/2013012460970/Business/20m-mill-will-lift-rice-exports.html
Cambodia secures $11bn funding to boost iron exports
Work will start this year on a 400km railway line and a new seaport in Cambodia, with most of the funding coming from Chinese sources. Cambodia Iron and Steel Mining Industry Group (CISMIG) and China Railway Major Bridge Engineering have signed an agreement to jointly invest ...
Nearly 1,000 workers fired from Winson International garment factory
Eight hundred and sixty-eight workers have been fired from the Winson International garment factory after they refused to obey a Kampong Speu Provincial Court injunction last week ordering them back to work within 48 hours. Free Trade Union official Ry Sithinet said yesterday that the workers, ...
A road runs through them
UP AND down a 4km stretch of highway on the northern outskirts of Phnom Penh, about 3,000 of Cambodia’s Cham minority have built a life. Their distinctive Muslim culture thrives in conditions of close-knit community, a stark contrast to the shattering days the country endured ...
http://www.economist.com/blogs/banyan/2013/01/cambodia%E2%80%99s-cham
Activists call on government to adopt forest law
Members of the Prey Lang Community Network yesterday called on the government to approve a forest preservation sub-decree that has been in draft form since 2011. Hoeun Sopheap, representative of the Kampong Thom provincial Prey Lang community, said the sub-decree would help protect the biodiversity of ...
Government Tells Unions to Agree on Minimum Wage Demands
The government on Monday requested that manufacturers look at raising the minimum wage for garment workers, but only after divided trade unions agree on what that wage should be. “After discussions, those present at the meeting agree in principle to discuss raising the minimum wage ...
http://www.cambodiadaily.com/business/government-tells-unions-to-agree-on-minimum-wage-demands-8193/
PM urges action against unnamed firms
Prime Minister Hun Sen yesterday ordered officials to take action against unnamed companies he said were using the cover of night to illegally dredge sand from the Mekong River. Calling on Water Resources and Meteorology Minister Lim Kean Hor to lead the crackdown, Hun Sen also ...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/2013012360929/National/pm-urges-action-against-unnamed-firms.html
Prosecutors tell court to drop charge in land dispute case
Prosecutors yesterday recommended that the Ratanakkiri Provincial Court drop charges against two human rights activists and a radio reporter accused in 2009 of inciting villagers involved in a land dispute against agro-business firm DM Group. Deputy prosecutor Ros Saram told the Post that because he ...
Should Minimum Wage Be Market Driven or Government-Dictated?
Manufacturers and unions aligned with the ruling CPP yesterday said the current labor shortage inside the garment industry would act as an incentive for employers to increase salaries, and that there was no need for the government to impose a new minimum wage. During a meeting ...
ចង់អោយមានការផ្លាស់ប្ដូរចំពោះគម្រោង ការពារព្រៃឡង់
កាលពីម្សិលមិញ ក្រុមអភិរក្សមួយក្រុម បានទាមទារអោយមានការកែប្រែលើចំនុចមួយចំនួនក្នុងអនុក្រឹត្យ ដែលចង់កែប្រែព្រៃឡង់ទៅជាតំបន់ការពារ ដោយសារពួកគាត់បារម្ភថា វានឹងអាចគំរាមកំហែងជាជាងការការពារព្រៃ។ ...
ឃួន ណារីម និង សាំង សុឥន្ទរិទ្ធ
http://www.cambodiadaily.com
Government okays maize imports
The cabinet approved a plan for the Public Warehouse Organisation to import 450,000 tonnes of tariff-free maize from Laos and Cambodia. Another 250,000 tonnes of maize would be imported from Cambodia, with 100,000 tonnes in August and another 150,000 tonnes between November and January 2014 ...
http://www.bangkokpost.com/business/economics/331949/government-okays-maize-imports
Japan Marks 60 Years of Relations With Cambodia
This year marks the 60th anniversary since the start of diplomatic relations between Cambodia and Japan – the country’s largest bilateral donor – and to celebrate, the Japanese Embassy is planning an array of cultural events. Speaking at a ceremony to mark the anniversary, Japanese Ambassador ...
Chinese Mining Firm Plans Siem Reap Extraction
A Chinese conglomerate headed by an adviser to Senate President Chea Sim plans to begin extracting gold and copper in Siem Reap province in two months, the firm’s chairman said yesterday. Khmer Holding, a group of companies that claims vast mineral interests in Cambodia, opened an ...