Kandal Province Plans to Build a New Bridge Across the River as Prek Pra Bridge Groundbreaking Ceremony Will Take Place on the 19th

According to Mr. Phorn Rim, Spokesman and Under Secretary of State of the Ministry of Public Works and Transport, the government plans to build another bridge across the river to National Road No. 23 in Koh Thom district, Kandal province.

Official data from the Ministry of Public Works and Transport has not confirmed or provided additional information regarding the new bridge project. However, according to documents from the Council of Ministers, in 2023, the government authorized the exchange of four places of state land in Koh Thom and Sampov Puon districts with a private company in exchange for infrastructure development, including plans to build bridges crossing the Tonle Bassac River, 500 meters long and 12 meters wide, from Sampov Puon commune to Prek Chrey commune in Sampov Puon city, Kandal province, with a cost of $24 million.

Koh Thom district, which borders Vietnam, currently has two bridges across the river: the 415-meter-long Cambodia-China Friendship Bridge (Koh Thom Bridge Project), which was inaugurated in 2018, and the bridge across the Cambodia-Vietnam border, Chrey Thom-Long Binh, which was inaugurated in 2017 under the presidency of the two governments.

At the unveiling of the new bridge project in the next few days, the head of government will participate in the groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of the Tonle Bassac River bridge (Chak Angre Krom-Prek Pra).

On the morning of Thursday, February 15, 2024, H.E. Suong Heng, Secretary of State and Chairman of the Commission, chaired a meeting for the construction of the bridge across the Tonle Bassac River (Chak Angre Krom-Prek Pra) groundbreaking ceremony and the connecting road with other relevant officials.

The purpose of this meeting is to review the progress of the work of each commission and subcommittee, as well as the remaining work.

The Secretary of State and Chairman of the Commission instructed all members of the Commission and Sub-Committees to work closely with stakeholders to provide each other with comprehensive information, especially to carry out the roles and responsibilities assigned by the management, which aim to ensure that the groundbreaking ceremony can run smoothly, in an orderly manner, with security, safety, and order for the presidency and participants as planned.

The groundbreaking ceremony for the bridge across the Tonle Bassac River (Chak Angre Krom-Prek Pra) and the connecting road under the concessional loan from the Government of the People's Republic of China is scheduled to take place on Monday, February 19, 2024, under the high presidency of Prime Minister Hun Manet.