Cambodian parliament panel chief questions management of Angkor Wat revenue

19 November 2014
Radio Free Asia
Anti-corruption / Budget / Government / Industries / Ministries and other national bodies / Ministry of Tourism / Office of the Council of Ministers / Tourism
Angkor Wat / Apsara Authority / Commission on Education Youth Sport Religious Affairs Culture and Tourism / Ministry of Tourism / Sok Kong / Sokha Company / Thong Khon / Yem Ponhearith

A parliamentary commission leader wants Cambodia’s tourism ministry to manage revenue generated by the country’s iconic Angkor Wat temple complex, amid concerns that the government is losing money by retaining a private company to oversee ticket sales. … A quasi-government group, Apsara Authority, which is responsible for conservation and tourist development of the Angkor Wat in Siem Reap, has contracted private firm Sokha Co. to oversee ticket sales at the temple complex. The company is owned by prominent businessman and former ruling Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) lawmaker Sok Kong. … After the meeting Wednesday, Thong Khun told reporters that he did not know how much ticket revenue Angkor Wat generated, because revenue was managed by the finance ministry and Apsara. He said the tourism ministry could only claim that about 4.2 million people visited Angkor Wat last year, and that revenue from tourism-related services—such as hotels, restaurants and transportation—which employ about 50,000 workers, reached U.S. $2.5 billion annually. …

 Roseanne Gerin
http://www.rfa.org/english/news/cambodia/angkor-wat-11192014172942.html