Cambodia starts work on canal linking Mekong River to sea
Cambodia has launched a controversial canal project to link the Mekong River to the sea.
Work on the $1.7bn project kicked off on Monday. Phnom Penh hopes the canal will boost the country’s economy. However, concern over the impact on the region’s environment and foreign relations is rife.
The Funan Techo Canal will run from a spot on the Mekong River about an hour’s drive southeast of Phnom Penh to the Gulf of Thailand. It is due to be completed in 2028.
A pet project of former Prime Minister Hun Sen, the canal is also viewed as a galvanising national undertaking intended to build support for his son and successor. Prime Minister Hun Manet took over at the end of his father’s 38-year rule last year.
The government declared Monday – also Hun Sen’s birthday – a holiday so Cambodians could participate in the “celebration in a joyful, crowded and proud manner”.
At the launch, Hun Manet called the 180km (110-mile) project “historic”, saying it will give the country a “nose to breathe through”.
“This project is not just an infrastructure project, but a nationalistic endeavour,” Hun Manet added. “We must build this canal at all costs.”
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Al Jazeera and news agencies
