‘Indian tuk-tuks”, which are smaller, easier to drive on narrow roads and cheaper to operate due to running on liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), have rapidly gained popularity and look likely to overtake the traditional four-wheeled tuk-tuk, or Remorque, once known as the “Emperors of the Road”. There remain, however, drivers who are dedicated to the spaciousness, and tourism appeal, of the traditional vehicle. From the mid-2000s until the mid-2010s, when Chhean Vanna produced Khmer tuk-tuks, supply was often not sufficient to meet demand. However, the introduction of the “Indian tuk-tuk” models, coupled with the convenience of ride-hailing apps and low…
Author: Raksmey Hong
Japan Heart, an international paediatric cancer NGO, is holding a blood donation event in collaboration with AEON Mall Phnom Penh to help counter the acute blood shortages faced by patients in Cambodia and to raise awareness of the importance of donating blood to deal with the rising demand. Japan Heart, which offers free medical care and surgery for children with cancer at Ponhea Leu Referral Hospital in Kandal province’s Ponhea Leu district, needs around 200 blood donors per month to meet the demands for blood transfusions for patients undergoing chemotherapy or having operations performed on them. “Japan Heart needs a…
The Ministry of Environment has laid out a policy of protecting forests to generate income from carbon credit sales and eco-tourism, with rangers and forest community members in protected areas acting as the first line of defence. The ministry said both are now helping boost eco-tourism and their own incomes by acting as guides to eco-tourists. In Kampong Speu province’s Oral district, a 41-year-old man named Ry Rann understands well the value of trees. The former logger turned his life around and is now dedicated to conservation of natural resources and protecting the environment in exchange for the income derived…
The Apsara National Authority (ANA) denied that it had banned the use of camera tripods in the Angkor Archaeological Park, explaining that the confusion stemmed from a long-standing rule which required commercial photographers and videographers to apply for permission to film. The explanation followed a Facebook post, which had gone viral, with an English caption reading “Tripods are now banned in the Angkor Wat area”. One social media user wrote: “Not even on the stones or on the ground! No matter what your purpose, you need to ask for permission now? What if you want to remember a wonderful sunset?…
The Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) has provided $10 million in grants to Cambodia for community development in three northwestern provinces. It is hoped that the grants will help the communities became more peaceful and sustainable. A signing ceremony was held on June 9 between KOICA country director Rho Hyun-jun and Minister of Rural Development Ouk Rabun at the ministry headquarters in Phnom Penh. The grants were provided under the “Project of Building Peace Villages through Integrated Rural Community Development”. According to KOICA, the project will be implemented in the provinces of Battambang, Pailin and Banteay Meanchey, where some areas…
Recently discovered statues at one of the gates of Angkor Thom temple in Siem Reap province have attracted public attention after their pictures went viral on social media. An archaeological team from the Apsara National Authority (ANA) found the buried statues broken in pieces – including the heads and pieces of their bodies – during an excavation of the Ta Kav gate at Angkor Thom. ANA spokesman Long Kosal said the team started repairs on the Ta Kav or western gate of Angkor Thom in early 2021 and found the statues, which are of devas and asuras, in July and…
The South Korean government via Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) donated seven vehicles to facilitate two programmes to the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports at the Royal University of Phnom Penh (RUPP) on June 7. The event, presided over by Heang Sine, undersecretary of state for the ministry, was organised as part of two programmes, with a total grant of $17 million, which was funded by the South Korean government. The programmes consist of a business incubation system project between universities and Cambodian industries, and a school feeding programme using community-based agriculture. Also present at the event were Hyunjun…
Phy Amkha was just a high school student and the son of poor farmers from Preah Vihear province who did not know how to set life goals. Then he was given training through the Everything is Going to Be OK (EGBOK) programme and Amkha came to understand his role in society and he learned useful life skills. The 25-year-old Amkha developed his career from being a waiter in the food and beverage sector to working as human resources staff in an office and this enabled him to buy a motorcycle and land as well as finish university and even give…
Sitting in a tiny space with both hands busy controlling the tip of her needle as her stitches give form to the green fabric, Sok Nhei is happy to be filling an order for 10 plush crocodiles from a customer. Located on the third floor of an apartment building in Boeung Keng Kang II on the same block as the former Kirirom Theatre, the 56-year-old woman relies solely on her sewing business to support herself and her two daughters in a house where the roof leaks so badly she has to flee to a neighbor’s house when it starts raining,…
After reading a newspaper article that claimed the record time for climbing Oral Mountain stood at three hours, 27 minutes and six seconds, an American and Australian duo decided to try and beat it as a gesture towards the revival of ecotourism in the Kingdom, which remains limited in the wake of the global Covid-19 pandemic. Jacob Sims and Julien Brewster decided to challenge the climbing record together as a team, saying that it wasn’t a race or a competition. On April 3, 2022, the pair began to climb Cambodia’s highest mountain at 5:55am and they reached its summit at…