Cambodia provincial profile_southern_coastal_area !

1. Cambodian Southern Coastal Area
an
Provincial Profiles
1- Koh Kong Province
2- Kampot Province
3- Kep Province
4- Sihanouk Ville Province

2. Overview of Cambodian Coastal Area
The southern coastal area covers 17, 237 square kilometers with the population of
960,487 (NIS 2008). The areas extent from Koh Kong , Sihanouk Ville , Kampot and
Kep provinces which entire coastal length is 440 Km (sea coast) and it is in average
about 230 Km from Phnom Penh city. The area shares border with Thailand to the
west, Vietnam to the East and Gulf of Thailand to the Southwest.
About 80 percent of the population of the coastal area is Khmer, although Cham,
Vietnamese, Chinese, Thai and ethnic minorities such as Sa Och also live there.
Most of people living along the coast have a good life. Mostly, they earn their living
by farming and fishing. The topography of Cambodia's coastal area is mountainous,
plateau, plain, coast, seaside and gulf. There is much sand in this area. Palm oil,
rubber, coconuts, pepper, rice, durian and other crops can be grown in this area. It is
also rich in varieties of mangrove. Cambodia's gulf, which divides the country from
the Malacca subcontinent, is not very deep, averaging only 50 meters. The maximum
depth is 81 meters. The bottom is plain. There are 60 islands in Cambodia's coastal
waters. They include 23 in Koh Kong province, 2 in Kampot province, 22 in
Sihanoukville and 13 in Kep city.
In July 2011, Koh Kong, Sihanouk Ville , Kampot and Kep, so-called “Cambodian
Bay” was included as the member of the Most Beautiful Bays in the World Club. This
has made Cambodia’s coastal area the 2nd economic pole in attracting investments
for promoting national economic growth after the royal capital Phnom Penh, and also
the main destination of natural tourism destination after the cultural and historical
heritage areas of Siem Reap-Angkor and Phnom Penh. Indeed, Preah Sihanouk
province has become the core of Cambodia’s coastal area, an international gateway,
an industry centre, and particularly an international level tourism resort that exists
in harmony with the our living environment and with great potential of natural
resources, physical infrastructure such as international airport and seaport,
telecommunication network and many other connecting economic infrastructure.
Moreover, Koh Kong province is an international level eco-tourism destination and
an industry centre linking with the ASEAN due to its high potential of geo-location,
sea resources, mangroves and forests with the connection to the great ecological
axis of the world that is Cardamom mountain’s tropical forest which is rich in rare
animals and the last one in Asia, and at present the area is listed as one of the 10
most famous eco-tourism sites in the world. Moreover, Kampot province is an
agricultural and processing centre with advanced technology, a national and
international trade and economic centre, and a destination for cultural, historical and
natural tourism with wonderful geo-location, sea resources, Bok Kor resort,
agricultural land and special features of agricultural crops such as durian, pepper,
salt and sea catch. Besides, Kep province is a centre of long-haul tourist destination
for those who love pure nature. All these essential features have allowed the four

3. provinces be integrated into a coastal area of Cambodia with coastal axis connecting
Koh Kong - Preah Sihanouk - Kampot -Kep provinces, linked with ASEAN highway
no. 123 and linked with Phnom Penh through Phnom Penh – Preah Sihanouk axis to
connect with the ASEAN highway No. 11.
The region has been proving substantial factors in attracting businesses and
investment as the potential is enormously in many sectors.

4. List of Acronyms
- AEC 2015: ASEAN Economic Community 2015
- ADB: Asian Development Bank
- CBTA: Cross-border Trade Agreement
- CCC: Cambodia Chamber of Commerce
- EU: European Union
- GI: Geographical Indication
- GMS: Greater Mekong Sub-region
- ICD: Inland Container Depot (ICD)
- JAIF: Japan –ASEAN integration Fund
- KK : Koh Kong
- MI : Mekong Institute
- NIS: National Institute of Statistic
- NZAP: New Zealand Aid Programme
- PD/MoC : Provincial Department/Ministry of Commerce
- PD/MIME: Provincial Department/ Ministry of Mine, Industry and Energy
- PP: Phnom Penh (Capital of Cambodia)
- SEZ: Special Economic Zone
- SEC : Southern Economic Corridor
- SMEs: Small Medium Enterprises
- SHV : Sihanouk Ville