Cambodia
Kingdom of CambodiaPreahreacheanachakr Kampuchea
multiparty democracy under a constitutional monarchy established in September 1993Independence 9 November 1953 (from France)
Cambodia as the 2002 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 116 fields, one of 36 editions from 1990 to 2025.
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Introduction
1 fieldBackground
Following a five-year struggle, Communist Khmer Rouge forces captured Phnom Penh in 1975 and ordered the evacuation of all cities and towns; over 1 million displaced people died from execution or enforced hardships. A 1978 Vietnamese invasion drove the Khmer Rouge into the countryside and touched off 13 years of fighting. UN-sponsored elections in 1993 helped restore some semblance of normalcy, as did the rapid diminishment of the Khmer Rouge in the mid-1990s. A coalition government, formed after national elections in 1998, brought renewed political stability and the surrender of remaining Khmer Rouge forces.
Geography
Southeastern Asia, bordering the Gulf of Thailand, between Thailand, Vietnam, and Laos
18 fieldsLand useshare of 181,040 sq km
Climate
- tropical;
- rainy, monsoon season (May to November);
- dry season (December to April);
- little seasonal temperature variation
Environment - current issues
- illegal logging activities throughout the country and strip mining for gems in the western region along the border with Thailand have resulted in habitat loss and declining biodiversity (in particular, destruction of mangrove swamps threatens natural fisheries);
- soil erosion;
- in rural areas, a majority of the population does not have access to potable water;
- toxic waste delivery from Taiwan sparked unrest in Kampong Saom (Sihanoukville) in December 1998
Environment - international agreements
- party to:
- Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
- signed, but not ratified:
- Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping
People
18 fieldsNote
Per 1,000 population(2002 est.)
Male · female
Age structure
- 0-14 years:
- 40.7% (male 2,646,883; female 2,550,015)
- 15-64 years:
- 55.8% (male 3,373,692; female 3,758,736)
- 65 years and over:
- 3.5% (male 182,149; female 263,849) (2002 est.)
Sex ratio
- at birth:
- 1.05 male(s)/female
- under 15 years:
- 1.04 male(s)/female
- 15-64 years:
- 0.9 male(s)/female
- 65 years and over:
- 0.69 male(s)/female
- total population:
- 0.94 male(s)/female (2002 est.)
Government
Multiparty democracy under a constitutional monarchy established in September 1993; King Norodom SIHANOUK (reinstated 24 September 1993); Prime Minister HUN SEN (since 30 November 1998) and Deputy Prime Ministers SAR KHENG (since NA) and TOL LAH (since NA)
18 fieldsPresidential electionpercent of vote
National Assembly, 61 seats, elected 26 July 1998one dot, one seat
Percent of vote
Country name
- conventional long form:
- Kingdom of Cambodia
- conventional short form:
- Cambodia
- local short form:
- Kampuchea
- local long form:
- Preahreacheanachakr Kampuchea
- former:
- Khmer Republic, Kampuchea Republic
Administrative divisions
- 20 provinces (khett, singular and plural) and 4 municipalities* (krong, singular and plural);
- Banteay Mean Cheay, Batdambang, Kampong Cham, Kampong Chhnang, Kampong Spoe, Kampong Thum, Kampot, Kandal, Kaoh Kong, Keb*, Kracheh, Mondol Kiri, Otdar Mean Cheay, Pailin*, Phnum Penh*, Pouthisat, Preah Seihanu* (Sihanoukville), Preah Vihear, Prey Veng, Rotanah Kiri, Siem Reab, Stoeng Treng, Svay Rieng, Takev
Legal system
- primarily a civil law mixture of French-influenced codes from the United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC) period, royal decrees, and acts of the legislature, with influences of customary law and remnants of communist legal theory;
- increasing influence of common law in recent years
Executive branch
- chief of state:
- King Norodom SIHANOUK (reinstated 24 September 1993)
- head of government:
- Prime Minister HUN SEN (since 30 November 1998) and Deputy Prime Ministers SAR KHENG (since NA) and TOL LAH (since NA)
- cabinet:
- Council of Ministers appointed by the monarch
- elections:
- none;
- the monarch is chosen by a Royal Throne Council;
- following legislative elections, a member of the majority party or majority coalition is named prime minister by the Chairman of the National Assembly and apppointed by the king
Legislative branch
bicameral consists of the National Assembly (122 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) and the Senate (61 seats; two members appointed by the monarch, two elected by the National Assembly, and 57 elected by "functional constituencies"; members serve five-year terms)
- elections:
- National Assembly - last held 26 July 1998 (next to be held NA July 2003); Senate - last held 2 March 1999 (next to be held NA 2004)
- election results:
- National Assembly - percent of vote by party - CPP 41%, FUNCINPEC 32%, SRP 14%, other 13%;
- seats by party - CPP 64, FUNCINPEC 43, SRP 15;
- Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%;
- seats by party - CPP 31, FUNCINPEC 21, SRP 7, other 2
Judicial branch
Supreme Council of the Magistracy (provided for in the constitution and formed in December 1997); Supreme Court (and lower courts) exercises judicial authority
Political parties and leaders
- Buddhist Liberal Party or BLP [IENG MOULY];
- Cambodian Pracheachon Party or Cambodian People's Party or CPP [CHEA SIM];
- Khmer Citizen Party or KCP [NGUON SOEUR];
- National United Front for an Independent, Neutral, Peaceful, and Cooperative Cambodia or FUNCINPEC [Prince NORODOM RANARIDDH];
- Sam Rangsi Party or SRP (formerly Khmer Nation Party or KNP) [SAM RANGSI]
International organization participation
ACCT, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, CCC, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (subscriber), ITU, NAM, OPCW (signatory), PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer)
Diplomatic representation in the US
- chief of mission:
- Ambassador ROLAND ENG
- FAX:
- [1] (202) 726-8381
- telephone:
- [1] (202) 726-7742
- chancery:
- 4500 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20011
Diplomatic representation from the US
- chief of mission:
- Ambassador Charles Aaron RAY
- embassy:
- 16, Street 228 (between streets 51 and 63), Phnom Penh
- mailing address:
- Box P, APO AP 96546
- telephone:
- [855] (23) 216-436
- FAX:
- [855] (23) 216-437
Flag description
three horizontal bands of blue (top), red (double width), and blue with a white three-towered temple representing Angkor Wat outlined in black in the center of the red band
Economy
Cambodia's economy slowed dramatically in 1997-98 due to the regional economic crisis, civil violence, and political infighting.
33 fieldsGDP - composition by sector(2000 est.)
Trading partnersexports left, imports right
Electricity
Economy - overview
Cambodia's economy slowed dramatically in 1997-98 due to the regional economic crisis, civil violence, and political infighting. Foreign investment and tourism fell off. In 1999, the first full year of peace in 30 years, progress was made on economic reforms and growth resumed at 5%. GDP growth for 2000 had been projected to reach 5.5%, but the worst flooding in 70 years severely damaged agricultural crops, and high oil prices hurt industrial production, and growth for the year is estimated at only 4%. In 2001, severe floods damaged an estimated 15% of the area devoted to rice.
Tourism now is Cambodia's fastest growing industry, with arrivals up 34% in 2000 and up another 40% in 2001 before the September 11 terrorist attacks in the US. The long-term development of the economy after decades of war remains a daunting challenge. The population lacks education and productive skills, particularly in the poverty-ridden countryside, which suffers from an almost total lack of basic infrastructure.
Fear of renewed political instability and corruption within the government discourage foreign investment and delay foreign aid. On the brighter side, the government is addressing these issues with assistance from bilateral and multilateral donors.
Industries
tourism, garments, rice milling, fishing, wood and wood products, rubber, cement, gem mining, textiles
Imports - commodities
petroleum products, cigarettes, gold, construction materials, machinery, motor vehicles
Economic aid - recipient
$548 million pledged in grants and concessional loans for 2001 by international donors
Exchange rates
riels per US dollar - 3,895.0 (January 2002), 3,918.5 (2001), 3,840.8 (2000), 3,807.8 (1999), 3,744.4 (1998), 2,946.3 (1997)
Communications
10 fieldsTelephone system
- general assessment:
- adequate landline and/or cellular service in Phnom Penh and other provincial cities; rural areas have little telephone service
- domestic:
- NA
- international:
- adequate but expensive landline and cellular service available to all countries from Phnom Penh and major provincial cities;
- satellite earth station - 1 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean region)
Transportation
9 fieldsAirports by runway lengthpaved left, unpaved right
Networkskm
Waterways
3,700 km note: navigable all year to craft drawing 0.6 m or less; 282 km navigable to craft drawing as much as 1.8 m
Merchant marine
- total:
- 404 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,889,404 GRT/2,740,232 DWT
- ships by type:
- bulk 37, cargo 312, chemical tanker 2, combination bulk 5, container 7, liquefied gas 1, livestock carrier 2, multi-functional large-load carrier 1, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 15, refrigerated cargo 10, roll on/roll off 9, short-sea passenger 2
note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Aruba 1, Belize 8, British Virgin Islands 1, Bulgaria 3, China 21, Cyprus 15, Denmark 1, Egypt 7, Estonia 1, Georgia 1, Germany 1, Greece 12, Honduras 5, Hong Kong 12, Iceland 1, Indonesia 2, Iran 1, Ireland 1, Italy 1, Japan 5, Jordan 1, Latvia 2, Lebanon 5, Liberia 5, Lithuania 1, Malta 1, Netherlands 1, Norway 2, Panama 7, Romania 4, Russia 67, Saint Kitts and Nevis 10, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 4, Singapore 15, South Korea 24, Syria 13, Thailand 1, Turkey 22, Ukraine 13, United Arab Emirates 2, United Kingdom 1, United States 5, Vietnam 2, Virgin Islands (UK) 1 (2002 est.)
Military
Royal Cambodian Armed Forces (RCAF): Army, Navy, Air Force
7 fieldsTransnational Issues
2 fieldsDisputes - international
- demarcation of boundaries with Cambodia, Thailand, and Vietnam is nearing completion;
- accuses Thailand of moving or destroying boundary markers and encroachment, of not respecting its claims, and of sealing off access to the Preah Vihear temple ruin awarded to Cambodia by the ICJ in 1962;
- accuses Vietnam of territorial encroachments and initiating armed border incidents in seven provinces, despite substantial demarcation efforts to date;
- disputes several offshore islands with Vietnam, which prevents delimitation of a maritime boundary
Illicit drugs
- narcotics-related corruption reportedly involving some in the government, military, and police;
- possible small-scale opium, heroin, and amphetamine production;
- large producer of cannabis for the international market;
- vulnerable to money laundering due to its cash-based economy and porous borders
Cite this entry
Central Intelligence Agency. “Cambodia.” The World Factbook 2002. Archived by The Factbook, thefactbook.org/cambodia/2002.