Cambodia

Kingdom of CambodiaReacheanachak Kampuchea

multiparty liberal democracy under a constitutional monarchyIndependence 9 November 1949 (from France)

Cambodia as the 1995 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 80 fields, one of 36 editions from 1990 to 2025.

field in that editiontext changed from the edition beforenot in that editionthe open editionEach field below ends in its editions, 1990 to 2025. Point at a year above to follow it down.

CapitalPhnom Penh
Area181,040 sq km
LocationSoutheastern Asia, bordering the Gulf of Thailand, between
1995

Every edition of Cambodia

Populationas each edition published it
10.56 million July 1995 est. · 6.99m in 1990
Population growth% a year
2.83% 1995 est. · 4.41% in 1993
Median ageyears
Not in this edition 19.2 yrs in 2003
Life expectancyyears at birth
49.46 years 1995 est. · 49.06 yrs in 1993
Fertility ratechildren per woman
5.81 children per woman 1995 est. · 4.5 in 1990
Infant mortalitydeaths per 1,000 live births
109.6 deaths per 1,000 live births 1995 est. · 128 in 1990
GDP per capitaeach edition's own dollars
$630 1994 est. · $280 in 1993
GDP real growth% a year
5% 1994 est. · 7.5% in 1994

Geography

Southeastern Asia, bordering the Gulf of Thailand, between | Thailand and Vietnam

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Land useshare of 181,040 sq km

arable land 16%permanent crops 1%meadows and pastures 3%forest and woodland 76%other 4%irrigated 920 sq km (1989 est.)
Area
181,040sq km
land area: 176,520 sq kmcomparative area: slightly smaller than Oklahoma
Coastline
443km
contiguous zone: 24 nmcontinental shelf: 200 nmexclusive economic zone: 200 nmterritorial sea: 12 nm
Land boundaries
2,572km
total · Laos 541 km, Thailand 803 km, Vietnam 1,228 km

Location

Southeastern Asia, bordering the Gulf of Thailand, between Thailand and Vietnam

Map references

Southeast Asia

International disputes

  • offshore islands and sections of the boundary with Vietnam are in dispute;
  • maritime boundary with Vietnam not defined;
  • parts of border with Thailand in dispute;
  • maritime boundary with Thailand not clearly defined

Climate

  • tropical;
  • rainy, monsoon season (May to November);
  • dry season (December to April);
  • little seasonal temperature variation

Terrain

mostly low, flat plains; mountains in southwest and north

Natural resources

timber, gemstones, some iron ore, manganese, phosphates, hydropower potential

Environment

current issues:
  • logging activities throughout the country and strip mining for gems in the western region along the border with Thailand are resulting in habitat loss and declining biodiversity (in particular, destruction of mangrove swamps threatens natural fisheries);
  • deforestation;
  • soil erosion;
  • in rural areas, a majority of the population does not have access to potable water
natural hazards:
  • monsoonal rains (June to November);
  • flooding;
  • occasional droughts
international agreements:
party to - Marine Life Conservation, Ship Pollution; signed, but not ratified - Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping

Note

a land of paddies and forests dominated by the Mekong River and Tonle Sap

People

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Population
10,561,373
(July 1995 est.)growth rate: 2.83% (1995 est.)

Per 1,000 population(1995 est.)

Birth
44.42Death
16.16Net migration
0

Male · female(1995 est.)

TotalMale · femaleLife expectancy years49.46
48 · 51
TotalMale · femaleLiteracy35%
48% · 22%
MaleFemaleLiteracy age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)

Ethnic divisions

Khmer 90%Vietnamese 5%Chinese 1%other 4%
Labor force
2.5million to 3 million
by occupation: agriculture 80% (1988 est.)

Age structure

0-14 years:
46% (female 2,367,414; male 2,438,104)
15-64 years:
51% (female 2,932,788; male 2,494,203)
65 years and over:
3% (female 185,337; male 143,527) (July 1995 est.)

Infant mortality rate

109.6 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)

Total fertility rate

5.81 children born/woman (1995 est.)

Nationality

noun:
Cambodian(s)
adjective:
Cambodian

Religions

Theravada Buddhism 95%, other 5%

Languages

Khmer (official), French

Government

Multiparty liberal democracy under a constitutional monarchy; King Norodom SIHANOUK (reinstated 24 September 1993); power shared between First Prime Minister Prince Norodom RANARIDDH and Second Prime Minister HUN SEN

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Names

conventional long form:
Kingdom of Cambodia
conventional short form:
Cambodia
local long form:
Reacheanachak Kampuchea
local short form:
Kampuchea

Type

multiparty liberal democracy under a constitutional monarchy established in September 1993

Capital

Phnom Penh

Administrative divisions

  • 21 provinces (khet, singular and plural);
  • Banteay Meanchey, Batdambang, Kampong Cham, Kampong Chhnang, Kampong Spoe, Kampong Thum, Kampot, Kandal, Kaoh Kong, Kracheh, Mondol Kiri, Phnum Penh, Pouthisat, Preah Vihear, Prey Veng, Rotanokiri, Siemreab-Otdar Meanchey, Sihanoukville, Stoeng Treng, Svay Rieng, Takev

note: Siemreab-Otdar Meanchey may have been divided into two provinces named Siemreab and Otdar Meanchey

Independence

9 November 1949 (from France)

National holiday

Independence Day, 9 November 1949

Constitution

promulgated September 1993

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Executive branch

chief of state:
King Norodom SIHANOUK (reinstated 24 September 1993)
head of government:
power shared between First Prime Minister Prince Norodom RANARIDDH and Second Prime Minister HUN SEN
cabinet:
Council of Ministers; elected by the National Assembly

Legislative branch

  • unicameral;
  • a 120-member constituent assembly based on proportional representation within each province was established following the UN-supervised election in May 1993;
  • the constituent assembly was transformed into a legislature in September 1993 after delegates promulgated the constitution

Judicial branch

Supreme Court provided for by the constitution has not yet been established and the future judicial system is yet to be defined by law

Political parties and leaders

  • National United Front for an Independent, Neutral, Peaceful, and Cooperative Cambodia (FUNCINPEC), Prince NORODOM RANARIDDH;
  • Cambodian Pracheachon Party or Cambodian People's Party (CPP), CHEA SIM;
  • Buddhist Liberal Democratic Party, SON SANN;
  • Democratic Kampuchea (DK, also known as the Khmer Rouge), KHIEU SAMPHAN;
  • Molinaka, PROM NEAKAREACH

Member of

ACCT, AsDB, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT (nonsignatory user), INTERPOL, ITU, NAM, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation in US

Ambassador SISOWATH SIRIRATH represents Cambodia at the United Nations

US diplomatic representation

chief of mission:
Ambassador Charles H. TWINING
embassy:
27 EO Street 240, Phnom Penh
mailing address:
Box P, APO AP 96546
telephone:
[855] (23) 26436, 26438

FAX

[855] (23) 26437

Flag

horizontal band of red separates two equal horizontal bands of blue with a white three-towered temple representing Angkor Wat in the center

Economy

The Cambodian economy - virtually destroyed by decades of | war - is slowly recovering.

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GDP per capita, PPP
$630
(1994 est.)
Real growth rate
5%
(1994 est.)industrial production growth: growth rate 7.9% (1993 est.); accounts for 8% of GDP
Inflation, consumer prices
26%
-30% (1994 est.)
External debt
$383million to OECD members
(1993)

Budget

Revenues
$190 millionExpenditures
$365 million (1994 est.)
expenditures including capital expenditures of $120 million

Installed generating capacity, 40,000 kW

Electricity production
160 millionElectricity consumption per capita
14 (1993)

Overview

The Cambodian economy - virtually destroyed by decades of war - is slowly recovering. Government leaders are moving toward restoring fiscal and monetary discipline and have established good working relations with international financial institutions. Growth, starting from a low base, has been strong in 1991-94.

Despite such positive developments, the reconstruction effort faces many tough challenges because of the persistence of internal political divisions and the related lack of confidence of foreign investors. Rural Cambodia, where 90% of about 9.5 million Khmer live, remains mired in poverty.

The almost total lack of basic infrastructure in the countryside will hinder development and will contribute to a growing imbalance in growth between urban and rural areas over the near term. Moreover, the government's lack of experience in administering economic and technical assistance programs and rampant corruption among officials will slow the growth of critical public sector investment. Inflation for 1994 as a whole was less than a quarter of the 1992 rate and was declining during the year.

National product

GDP - purchasing power parity - $6.4 billion (1994 est.)

Exports

$283.6 million (f.o.b., 1993)

commodities:
timber, rubber, soybeans, sesame
partners:
Singapore, Japan, Thailand, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia

Imports

$479.3 million (c.i.f., 1993)

commodities:
cigarettes, construction materials, petroleum products, machinery
partners:
Singapore, Vietnam, Japan, Australia, Hong Kong, Indonesia

Industries

rice milling, fishing, wood and wood products, rubber, cement, gem mining

Agriculture

  • mainly subsistence farming except for rubber plantations;
  • main crops - rice, rubber, corn;
  • food shortages - rice, meat, vegetables, dairy products, sugar, flour

Illicit drugs

  • increasingly used as a transshipment country for heroin produced in the Golden Triangle;
  • growing money-laundering center;
  • high-level narcotics-related corruption in government;
  • possible small-scale heroin production;
  • large producer of cannibis

Economic aid

recipient:
  • US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $725 million;
  • Western (non-US countries) (1970-89), $300 million;
  • Communist countries (1970-89), $1.8 billion;
  • donor countries and multilateral institutions pledged $880 million in assistance in 1992;
  • IMF pledged $120 million in aid for 1995-98

Currency

1 new riel (CR) = 100 sen

Exchange rates

riels (CR) per US$1 - 2,470 (December 1993), 2,800 (September 1992), 500 (December 1991), 560 (1990), 159.00 (1988), 100.00 (1987)

Fiscal year

calendar year

Transportation

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Airports by runway lengthpaved left, unpaved right · 22 in all

2
2,438 to 3,047 m
2
1,524 to 2,437 m
3
914 to 1,523 m
10
2
under 914 m
1,524 to 2,438 m
3
PavedUnpaved

Networkskm

Highways
34,100Railroads
655
Highways: (some roads in serious disrepair) · paved: bituminous 3,000 km · unpaved: crushed stone, gravel, or improved earth 3,100 km; unimproved earth 28,000 km · Railroads: narrow gauge: 655 km 1.000-m gauge

Railroads

total:
655 km
narrow gauge:
655 km 1.000-m gauge

Highways

total:
34,100 km (some roads in serious disrepair)
paved:
bituminous 3,000 km
unpaved:
crushed stone, gravel, or improved earth 3,100 km; unimproved earth 28,000 km

Inland waterways

3,700 km navigable all year to craft drawing 0.6 meters; 282 km navigable to craft drawing 1.8 meters

Ports

Kampong Saom (Sihanoukville), Kampot, Krong Kaoh Kong, Phnom Penh

Communications

3 fields

Telephone system

NA telephones; service barely adequate for government requirements and virtually nonexistent for general public

local:
NA
intercity:
NA
international:
international service limited to Vietnam and other adjacent countries

Radio

broadcast stations:
AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0
radios:
NA

Television

broadcast stations:
1
televisions:
NA

Defense Forces

4 fields

Khmer Royal Armed Forces (KRAF)

  • created in 1993 by the merger of the Cambodian People's Armed Forces and the two non-Communist resistance armies;
  • note - the KRAF is also known as the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces (RCAF)

Resistance forces

National Army of Democratic Kampuchea (Khmer Rouge)

Manpower availability

  • males age 15-49 2,255,050;
  • males fit for military service 1,256,632;
  • males reach military age (18) annually 70,707 (1995 est.)

Defense expenditures

exchange rate conversion - $85 million, 1.4% of GDP (1995 est.) CAMEROON

Central Intelligence Agency. “Cambodia.” The World Factbook 1995. Archived by The Factbook, thefactbook.org/cambodia/1995.

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