Cambodia Review

THURSDAY, 25 AUGUST 2011 15:01 DON WEINLAND AND MAY KUNMAKARA CHINA  National Cereal, Oil and Foodstuffs Corporation (COFCO) is the latest mainland Chinese company to sign a deal to export Cambodian rice. The deal inked with Cambodia’s Angkor Rice provides for exports of 1,000 tonnes of rice. COFCO is one of a number of Chinese companies that have signed similar deals with their Cambodian counterparts, but  direct rice exports to China are yet to begin in earnest. Cambodia’s rice exports are awaiting approval from Chinese inspectors, experts say. A protocol signed between the two countries in October last year states that rice samples must be free of agricultural pests that experts say are endemic in Cambodian rice fields. “The Chinese are very strict on quality,” Phou Puy, president of the Federation of Rice Millers Associat-ions and the Baitong Rice Export Company, said. “So far, we haven't received any updated information on the inspect

Metfone has claimed to control more than 80 percent of Cambodia’s fibre-optic network, allowing it to reach every commune in the Kingdom. The firm said it contributed 16,000 kilometres of fibre-optic backbone to Cambodia’s total of about 20,000 kilometres, citing a February report from the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications. The last 20 percent was split between Telecom Cambodia and Cambodia Fibre Optic Communication Network Company (CFOCN), the company said. Metfone, which is owned by Viettel, a subsidiary of the Vietnamese military, claimed its cable deployment, all of which has been done since the company received an investment licence in 2006, was “13 times as high as the total national optical backbone developed by the whole country during previous 10 years”. “Metfone is currently the owner of the biggest capacity and largest coverage fiber network in Cambodia,” Metfone said in a statement released earlier this month. While Metfone Managing Director Nguyen Duy Tho di

Last night, Nerd Night Phnom Penh performed the Mao's a pub near Phnom Penh Night Market. It was a really great show for both Cambodian and expats to relax and listen to interesting topic from various presenters. The most important point for the Nerd Night is we can catch things that we never know or experience. It is like a short to find something new. Great Show!

According to IMF and WB studying about GDP of G8, G20, and ASIEN, Cambodia GDP growth is at second place after Singapore. Based on Mr Heng Vanda, President of Vanda Institute, the three main factors that help the growth of Cambodia GDP are tourism, export, and agriculture. The growth will keep continue because the factors above are in good health. Mr Vanda added Singapore has the highest GDP growth which 8.3, while Cambodia's growth is in the middle of 6.7 to 6.9 and it grows to 7. Source: Koh Santepheap Daily

In Cambodia, there are 7 main mobile phone operators running. The most active in the media market are Cellcard, Hello, Beeline, and Smart. Below is the list of the mobile phone operators: 1. Cellcard 2. Hello 3. Smart (Starcell was purchased by Smart) 4. Beeline 5. Metfone 6. Mfone 7. Excel By: Pisith Phal

Revenues per user in Cambodia’s mobile phone sector will drop sharply over the next five years, according to global research and consultancy firm Frost & Sullivan. The company said the average revenue per user – ARPU, a key metric for the industry – would fall to US$3.68 in 2016 from $5.14 last year, as more and more lower-income Cambodians adopted the technology and  increased competit-ion drove down revenues. “The indication is that things will get worse,” Marc Einstein, Frost & Sullivan’s industry manager for information and communications technologies in the Asia-Pacific, said. “Profitability growth declines over time in this industry.” Einstein said the trend could be one catalyst for consolidat-ion in the sector, as less-profitable firms sought to merge with stronger competitors. He noted that Frost & Sullivan’s figures were based on average revenue per SIM card, and not per person. As many Cambodians use more than one SIM card, Einstein estimat