News
Local home loans survive a slowdown
Commercial banks saw strong growth in housing loans last year despite a slowdown in the real estate sector, which could have a knock-on effect and threaten the growth of the country’s services. According to a Ministry of Economy and Finance report released late last month, ...
Old mines destroyed in Pursat
More than 100 landmines and unexploded ordnance were destroyed on February 21 by deminers in Pursat province’s Veal Veng district. District police officer Solie Mesa told Khmer Times on February 23 that a large variety of dangerous material had been found and destroyed. “All those found were remnants of ...
KrisEnergy to consider selling stake in Block A
Singapore-listed KrisEnergy Ltd is considering selling or farming out a stake in its Cambodia Block A offshore oilfield to ease its debt burden, according to the company’s 2016 year-end report. The oil and gas company posted $237.1 million in net losses for the 2016 fiscal ...
Meat imports rack up $100M tab
Cambodians spent over $100 million on imported meat last year, further widening the gap of domestic supply as local producers failed to capture the lucrative protein market, a government official said on February 23. Lor Reaksmey, spokesman for the Ministry of Agriculture, said Cambodia’s heavy ...
Sihanoukville dredging eyed
Ministry of Environment officials on February 22 said an inspection team will be deployed to investigate the recently halted sand-dredging operation for the development of the Sihanoukville Autonomous Port’s new multipurpose terminal, which has affected local families. Danh Serey, director of the ministry’s environmental impact assessment ...
Tax exemption offered to SMEs
A two-year income tax exemption is being offered to small and medium-sized enterprises that register with the Ministry of Economy and Finance before the end of 2018. According to a sub-decree published on February 22, the decision to offer a tax exemption for SMEs that are ...
Land feuds get top-level airing
Fifteen national and international organizations representing 38 civil society groups met with the National Assembly’s first commission on February 22 to discuss eight major land dispute cases in an effort to find a solution for those affected. Seoung Sen Karona, a human rights monitor and investigator for ...
Exploitation up, trafficking down
More cases of sexual exploitation were reported in 2016, a report from the Interior Ministry revealed on February 22. However, the number of human trafficking cases saw a reduction last year compared with 2015. In 2016, the ministry reported 52 cases of sexual exploitation involving 87 victims ...
Women flock to foreign work
The number of Cambodian women being sent to work abroad last year increased by 30 percent compared with 2015, a report said. However the report also noted that more than half of all the migrant workers who were rescued and repatriated last year were women. According ...
Failures at assembly pile up
National Assembly effectiveness declined last year with prosecutions of opposition lawmakers, partisan passing of laws and many assembly members visiting constituents only to shore up their vote, an election watchdog claimed on February 21. A Committee for Free and Fair Elections in Cambodia report on ...