Sihanoukville is a further economic development destination; how will it be developed?

On January 31, Prime Minister Hun Manet officially announced the implementation of the “Special Program to Promote Investment in Sihanoukville 2024,” which provides many benefits such as exemption and preferential tax, special visas, etc. for investment projects related to and not related to stuck buildings in Sihanoukville.

At the same time, the Prime Minister stated that among the five poles, the Royal Government has identified the second and third poles, which are Siem Reap and Sihanoukville, as a goal for further stimulus to economic development.

In addition, the Prime Minister also stated that Sihanoukville will be an important city that stimulates the economy of Cambodia and will be a financial center and a regional transportation hub in Southeast Asia.

These show the royal government's ambition to develop Sihanoukville. So how will Sihanoukville develop?

According to the “Sihanoukville Provincial Land Management Plan Vision 2030” launched by the Royal Government of Cambodia, the vision for 2030 of the «Sihanoukville Provincial Land Management Plan is to arrange and develop Sihanoukville to be a pole of sustainable national development in the coastal areas of Cambodia through the development of modern cities, the most beautiful coastal resorts in the world, multi-purpose special economic zones, an international gateway, national growth centers, national logistics centers that link to ASEAN and global markets, and modern industrial production centers that are in harmony with a better living environment.»

Sihanoukville Urban Development

In the Sihanoukville Provincial Land Management Plan, it is stated that, in relation to the infrastructure development strategy, there are three development axes:

1. Axis of Development between Phnom Penh-Sihanoukville

● National Road No. 4 is the main national road that serves as the axis of industrial logistics development, and National Road No. 3 is an additional option to support transportation and travel between Phnom Penh and Sihanoukville, which needs to be developed and expand extra road width.

● Build more expressways to meet transportation and traffic needs.

● Design and construction of photo booths along National Road at least one place within a distance of 50 kilometers.

➡ As we all know, the Phnom Penh-Sihanoukville Expressway is Cambodia's first expressway. On the occasion of the one-year anniversary of the official opening of the expressway, Prime Minister Hun Manet also sent a congratulatory letter and stated that the expressway has been playing an important role in improving the efficiency of people's travel by helping to avoid traffic jams and reduce travel time to only about 2 hours. In addition, this expressway has become a new economic artery to serve the transportation and connectivity sectors, especially to promote the further development of Sihanoukville.

2. Axis of Railway Development Connecting Sihanoukville, Kampot, Kep, and Phnom Penh

The railway connecting Sihanoukville Port to Phnom Penh via Kampot and Kep has been restored. The railway should be further modernized to become an alternative to efficient transportation of passenger cars and goods, reduce environmental impact, reduce costs, reduce accidents, and reduce time.

➡ According to the news in July 2023, Cambodia is in the process of improving the southern railway from Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville from slow to high speed to respond to the current increase in passenger demand and freight.

H.E. Sun Chanthol confirmed that "now that we are studying the railway from Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville, we have also increased the speed to 160 kilometers per hour.”

3. Axis of Development: Supporting Border Trade between Koh Kong, Preah Sihanouk, Kampot, and Kep Provinces

Improving the road network and the control facilities of the competent authorities to promote the development of trade and transportation areas across the border between Thailand and Vietnam more effectively.

In addition, the Sihanoukville Provincial Land Management Plan also identifies and organizes constructions to provide services to the public, including: public administration buildings, public school buildings, public hospitals, public car parks, bus stations, car stations, passenger train stations, port distribution stations, dry port, logistics supply center, etc. In addition, there will be kindergartens, primary schools, secondary schools, colleges, and universities to promote the development of education and improve the living environment.

From the latest news, we can also see that Sihanoukville is developing and changing gradually.

In November 2023, Long Dimanche, Deputy Governor of Sihanoukville Province, said that the use of clean water in Sihanoukville and parts of Stung Hav and Prey Nup, which used to have a shortage of water, is no longer in short supply after the water supply network reached all those places.

In December 2023, the Sihanoukville Provincial Administration held a meeting to review, discuss, and approve the draft proposal for the establishment of a new city, as the province, now known as "The Rising Star of the Southwest," already has two cities, such as Sihanoukville city and Koh Rong city. The plan is to create a new city called Kampong Som City, which is cut off from Prey Nob district.

On January 22, 2024, H.E. Kuoch Chamroeun, Governor of Sihanoukville Province, led the provincial team to inspect the location of the Phsar Leu parking lot in Sihanoukville to study and organize a smart parking lot.

In addition to strengthening the city's infrastructure in Sihanoukville, the government is also paying attention to the city's security environment. On the occasion of announcing the implementation of the “Special Program to Promote Investment in Sihanoukville 2024” on January 31, 2024, Samdech Thipadei Hun Manet ordered the closure of all private gun shooting ranges in Sihanoukville to strengthen security and safety for tourists. The PM added that the army unit must not be open to civilians to shoot.

Tourism Development in Sihanoukville Province

Sihanoukville is a destination for many potential tourist destinations, such as Koh Rong, Ream National Park, Koh Russey, Otres Beach, Sokha Beach, etc.

According to the Sihanoukville Provincial Land Management Plan, tourism in Sihanoukville will also be developed in the following areas:

● Promote the development and conservation of coastal areas, islands, archipelagos, marine parks, and eco-tourism sites in Sihanoukville, the most beautiful beach in the world.

● Establishing a maritime museum in Sihanoukville Poy Machov

● Establish a tourism development and ecotourism development area in the coastal area of Prey Nob district.

● Establish a coastal tourism development area on Prek Treng and Keo Phos beaches in Stung Hav district.

● Establish ecotourism sites and marine parks on protected islands around the island.

● Target the development of eco-tourism and agro-tourism areas, especially along the coast, mangrove forests, flooded forests, canals, streams, lakes, waterfalls, and mountainous areas in Stung Hav, Prey Nob, and Kampong Seila districts, connecting natural water sources and forest cover.

In addition to the tourism development of Sihanoukville, the Ministry of Tourism will also jointly develop a master plan for the development of coastal provinces with four provinces: Sihanoukville, Kampot, Koh Kong, and Kep, which is expected to be completed in 2024.

Recently, facilities related to tourism development in Sihanoukville have also been improved.

In December 2023, the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications launched a public Wi-Fi service in two major beach locations in Sihanoukville, Ochheuteal Beach and Otres Beach, to provide free services to tourists who come to visit during the Global New Year 2024.

In January this year, the $300 million Koh Rong International Airport (4C) project, invested by the Royal Group Koh Rong Development Company, owned by Neak Oknha Kith Meng, gradually began.

Moreover, according to the announcement of the National Committee for Clean City Evaluation, Sihanoukville Province ranked No. 1 in the city competition with the Best Global New Year. 

Not only that, according to a recent report by Condé Nast Traveler, a luxury travel magazine, Song Saa Island in Sihanoukville has been selected as one of the best beach resorts in Asia in 2024. 

In the past three months, three cruise ships have docked in Sihanoukville, bringing a total of nearly 8,000 international tourists to Sihanoukville, of which «Westerdam» has docked twice.

Special economic zones and modern industrial production centers in Sihanoukville 

Sihanoukville Special Economic Zone was launched in March 2008 and is located in Pu Thuong Village, Bit Trang Commune, and Smach Deng Village, Ream Commune, Prey Nob District, Preah Sihanouk Province, on an area of 1,113 hectares. As of September 2023, there are more than 230 investment projects in Sihanoukville Special Economic Zone that employ about 25,600 workers. Sihanoukville SEZ has investment targets such as manufacturing electronics, electrical wiring, auto accessories, TV frames, and solar panels.

H.E. Chea Vuthy, Secretary General of the Cambodian Investment Board of the Council for the Development of Cambodia, said that currently in the Sihanoukville SEZ, about 70% of the total area of 1,113 hectares has been developed, which is planned to increase the number of factories to 300 and increase to 100,000 jobs.

According to a recent report released by the Sihanoukville SEZ in 2023, the Sihanoukville Special Economic Zone achieved an export-import value of approximately $3.662 billion, equivalent to approximately 7.18% of the total trade volume of the country, totaling $46.83 billion. The trade volume in Sihanoukville Special Economic Zone in 2023 had increased by 34.86% compared to 2022.

Logistics Center in Sihanoukville

In the Sihanoukville Provincial Land Management Plan, it is stated that the vision for 2030 is to learn and develop Sihanoukville into a national logistics center that links to ASEAN and global markets.

In April 2023, H.E. Sun Chanthol signed the Financial Advisory Services Agreement with Mr. Asad Yaqub, Representative of the International Finance Corporation (IFC), to establish Public-Private Partnership (PPP) for a logistics center in Sihanoukville province. Sihanoukville Logistics Center is one of the two priority logistics centers to be developed in Cambodia. The project is expected to be phased in with a total capital of about $200 million. The awarding of the contract to the winning bidder is likely to take place at the end of 2024, with the center to be completed in three years.

In December 2023, the first phase of the deep-water container terminal in Sihanoukville Autonomous Port, Sihanoukville Province, officially opened the construction site. New Deep Water Container Terminal: The first step is 350 meters long, and the construction depth is 14.5 meters, with a construction period of 36 months scheduled for completion in 2026. 

Once completed, it will have the capacity to accommodate 60,000 tons (or 4,000 TEUs) of container vessels with transport links in the Asia-Pacific region to the Sihanoukville Autonomous Port, and it is expected to increase the total port capacity to 1,250,000 TEUs per year. Shipping costs will be reduced by about $200 per TEU. The price is similar to other countries in the region.

In addition, Sihanoukville has seen significant growth in new construction investment, driven by increased foreign direct investment and demand for new industrial plants. According to the World Bank report, which cites data from the Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning, and Construction, from January to August 2023, newly approved construction projects in Cambodia cost a total of $1.5 billion. The value of new construction projects in Sihanoukville reached $656 million, equivalent to 44% of total investment, an increase of 152% compared to the same period in 2022.

However, the above-mentioned plan shows the important location of Sihanoukville in Cambodia, and the direction of future development is fundamentally clear. We will continue to focus on infrastructure, policies, and ongoing plans.