The Ministry of Tourism has unveiled plans to establish a new Siem Reap city – Grand Siem Reap –, located near the under-construction new Siem Reap Airport in Sotr Nikum district, Siem Reap province.
The new city, part of Siem Reap Tourism Development Master Plan, will be developed into a Smart City, but the city will be designed following Khmer architecture, said Thong Khon, Minister of Tourism, after a recapitulative meeting .
“The establishment of Grand Siem Reap is to support the old city of Siem Reap which cannot accommodate high-rise buildings or constructions that can affect cultural heritage,” he explained.
However, the specific date for the project to begin has not been unveiled. Mr Khon said a working team is studying the project in detail.
Scores of 20 major investment projects have been proposed in the Siem Reap Tourism Development Master Plan 2020-2035.
Regarding the plan, the Ministry of Public Works and Transport is going to build 38 roads in Siem Reap to enhance the economy and beauty of the province, as well as to help connect the city centre to rural areas.
The groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of the 38 roads is scheduled for mid-November under the presidency of Prime Minister Hun Sen. Chea Vannak – AKP
The European Union has contributed just under $2.4 million to Cambodia for the safe re-opening of schools and the continuing education of children, as part of their support for COVID-19 response and recovery.
Using this support, a nationwide back-to-school campaign has been launched by the Ministry of Education, the EU and Unicef which provides practical guidance to children, parents, teachers and school personnel on how to make schools as safe as possible to reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission.
According to a Unicef press statement yesterday, the campaign will continue through next year and expand to include valuable and engaging information, not only to make schools safe, but also to create healthy and caring environments for children to learn and thrive.
Critical hygiene supplies are also being delivered to all 11,500 of the country’s pre-schools and primary schools. The EU’s contribution to these efforts, through the Unicef-managed multi-donor Capacity Development Partnership Fund (CDPF), is complemented by other CDPF partners, including Sweden, USAID and the Global Partnership for Education.
These partners are contributing to the provision of hygiene supplies to all 1,771 secondary schools in Cambodia.
Minister of Education Hang Chuon Naron said: “We welcome the additional support from the EU for our schools and students across the country during this very challenging time. This support will enable us to ensure children have continued opportunities to learn, despite the challenges COVID-19 is creating. The support for safe school re-openings from the EU and other CDPF partners will go a long way towards giving confidence to communities that students can now return to safe and supportive learning environment.”
The official ground breaking ceremony for Aeon mall 3 took place 7th after receiving necessary approvals from the Council for the Development of Cambodia (CDC).
Phnom Penh Governor Khuong Sreng (second from right) attending the inauguration ceremony the groundbreaking ceremony of Aeon Mall III. KT/Siv Channa
Hyundai Engineering and Construction Co Ltd., has been appointed as the main contractor. Aeon 3 is set to be another huge retail space that will be adding to the 4 percent gain in retail space this year. The mall is being developed at a cost of $289.6 million by the international Japanese retail conglomerate, AEON Group.
Aeon is the largest retailer in Asia and is a retail network comprising around 300 consolidated subsidiaries and 26 equity-method affiliated companies. These range from convenience stores “Ministop” and supermarkets to shopping malls and specialty stores, including having owned the American chain Talbots. AEON is Japan’s single-largest shopping mall developer and operator.
Aeon 3 comprises a five-storey shopping centre with parking facilities. The mall is located on a 170,000 square meters site and is the largest of the three Aeon malls in Cambodia. The first Aeon mall in Tonle Bassac is 68,000 sq mt and the second Aeon mall in Sen Sok is 85,000 sq mt.
Phnom Penh Governor Khuong Sreng said, “The construction of the Aeon Mall 3 by Aeon Mall (Cambodia) will attract more investments into the Kingdom and serve as a flagship investment by the Japanese. It also reflects the friendship and comprehensive collaboration between Japan and Cambodia.”
He added that Phnom Penh has around 263 residential projects and 1,424 high-rise buildings. Sreng added that in the first 9 months of the year, the Capital has received more than 1,020 new construction projects sitting on five million square meters and are worth approximately $2.3billion.
“The construction of Aeon Mall 3 by the Aeon Mall (Cambodia) Co., Ltd now is the right decision as it aligns with the Phnom Penh Master Plan 2035 and because the south of Phnom Penh has been considered as the new development zone for welcoming new high rise buildings, luxurious buildings and satellite city in the capital,” Sreng added.
“To push and support private investments in the service sector in Phnom Penh, I would like to support the project and will contribute towards facilitating its implementation and collaborating with the company to have a better investment environment in order to build confidence with the investors and businessmen,” he added.
Ann Thida, managing director of real estate company CBRE, had earlier said that the investment from Aeon Mall 3 shows the retail sector is in demand. “In the southern part of Phnom Penh, there is no supermarket or mall yet, so it shows the potential,” Thida said.
“The investment is in the centre of an area with vast potentials because many middle class people will move there.”
Cambodia and Japan have pledged to strengthen military cooperation, including capacity building and experience sharing.
The commitment was underlined in a recent phone conversation between Gen. Hun Manet, Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces (RCAF) and Commander of the Royal Cambodian Army and Gen. Yuasa Goro, Chief of Staff, Japan’s Ground Self-Defence Forces.
In the phone conversation, both sides shared mutual experience of military engagement in fighting COVID-19 and exchanged appreciation of the bilateral collaboration so far.
The Japan’s side promised to help capacitate Cambodian military forces in dealing with disasters through more exposure visits and beyond.
Thanking the Japanese counterpart, Gen Manet expressed his optimism of further enhanced military cooperation between Cambodia and Japan.
Gen. Goro echoed the positive insights and extended his invitation to Gen Manet to visit Japan in February 2021.
Gen. Yuasa Goro paid his first work visit to Cambodia in February 2020. Lim Nary – AKP
