Cambodia has 50 SEZs with 28 in operation currently

Currently, Cambodia has 50 special economic zones with a total investment capital of US$3.5 billion. Of these, 28 are operational, with 804 investment projects, while another 22 are under development.

This was stated by H.E. Suon Sophal, Deputy Secretary General of the Board of Investment of Cambodia of the Council for the Development of Cambodia (CDC).

He said that among the 50 Special Economic Zones (SEZs), 7 are new special economic zones that were recently approved by the CDC in 2024. These special economic zones have regional markets located in border areas, coastal areas, and in various capitals and provinces.

He stated, “Production in this special economic zone has contributed to the growth of Cambodia's exports from 2011 to October 2024, reaching US$32.6 billion.”

“The creation of this special economic zone is based on connecting with other countries by pushing the location of these zones to important economic clusters. Especially along the Cambodia-Thailand and Cambodia-Vietnam borders and along the coastal areas.”

This was stated by His Excellency, continuing to say, “This is to make it easier to attract investment so that investors can use our location and use the infrastructure in neighboring countries to reduce production costs.”

According to His Excellency the Deputy Secretary General, the Special Economic Zone of Cambodia is investing in the automotive sector (automobile assembly, production of automotive parts, car seats, and various components related to vehicles). The electronic parts are electrical components, electronic accessories, solar panels, the production of printed circuit boards, and cables with connectors, etc. In addition, in the Special Economic Zone, there is also investment in the textile sector (clothing, shoes, bags...) and the agro-industrial sector.

It is worth noting that special economic zones fall under the scope of the Investment Law and were officially established under a decree of the Kingdom of Cambodia in 2005. These zones aim to improve the investment atmosphere in Cambodia to enhance “productivity, competitiveness, national economic growth, promote exports, and create jobs to reduce poverty.”

Over the past 10 months, trade relations between Cambodia and its global partners have reached more than US$45 billion, an increase of 16.5 percent compared to the same period in 2023. Of these, Cambodia's total exports amounted to more than US$21.5 billion, an increase of 16 percent, while imports amounted to nearly US$23.5 billion, an increase of 17 percent.