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The Positive and Negative Impacts of Tourism on Cambodia

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Published: Jul 10, 2019

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Positive effects of tourism in cambodia, negative effects of tourism in cambodia, positive and negative impacts of tourism on the environment of cambodia, works cited.

• Conservation Efforts: Revenue generated from tourism has been channeled into conservation initiatives aimed at protecting Cambodia's natural and cultural heritage sites. This includes funding for the preservation of historical temples like Angkor Wat and the conservation of biodiversity in national parks.
• Reforestation: In some regions, tourism-driven conservation projects have led to reforestation efforts, helping to restore damaged ecosystems and combat deforestation.
• Deforestation: The growth of tourism has contributed to deforestation in Cambodia, particularly in areas near popular destinations like Siem Reap. Forests are cleared to make way for infrastructure development, such as hotels and roads, resulting in habitat loss for numerous plant and animal species.
• Pollution: Increased tourist activities have led to higher levels of pollution, including water pollution from sewage and waste disposal. This pollution can harm aquatic ecosystems and water quality, affecting both wildlife and local communities.
• Habitat Destruction: Construction of tourist facilities, such as resorts and golf courses, often involves the destruction of natural habitats. This can disrupt the ecosystems that support Cambodia's unique and diverse wildlife.
• Overuse of Natural Resources: The demand for water, energy, and other resources in tourist areas can strain local supplies, leading to over-extraction of resources and exacerbating scarcity in already vulnerable regions.
• Soil Erosion: Activities related to tourism, such as hiking and off-road vehicle tours, can contribute to soil erosion, further degrading natural landscapes.
• Wildlife Exploitation: The demand for wildlife-based tourism activities, such as elephant rides and visits to wildlife sanctuaries, can contribute to the illegal wildlife trade and the mistreatment and endangerment of animals.
• Nhean, P. (2013). 'The Kingdom of Wonder': Cambodia's Destination Branding. In R. Raj & G. Musa (Eds.), Tourism Development in Asia (pp. 139-153). Channel View Publications.
• Royal Government of Cambodia (RGC). (2012). Cambodia Tourism Marketing Strategy 2012-2020. Ministry of Tourism, Cambodia.
• World Travel and Tourism Council. (2016). Travel & Tourism Economic Impact 2016 Cambodia. World Travel and Tourism Council.
• Meng, K., & Nhean, P. (2018). Chinese Tourists Driving Southeast Asia Airport Boom. Nikkei Asian Review.
• Ma, A., & Cripps, K. (2017). Angkor Wat: Tourists behaving badly at Cambodia's sacred site. CNN Travel.
• Fifield, A. (2018). Cambodia’s Chinese tourism boom sparks concerns over impact. Financial Times.
• World Bank. (2019). Cambodia: Maximizing the Benefits of Tourism for Inclusive Development. World Bank Group.

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Recharging Cambodia’s Tourism Sector

This article was first published in Khmer Times on March 18, 2024.

The tourism sector has long been a linchpin of Cambodia’s economic growth and employment. The abundance of natural, cultural, and historical assets has helped attract millions of foreign visitors to the Kingdom each year.

The tourism sector has allowed Cambodia to earn billions of U.S. dollars in tourism revenue and generate a wide range of jobs. In 2019, the sector directly employed 630,000 people with tourism receipts peaking at USD4.9 billion, or 18.2 percent share of GDP, the highest among the ASEAN+3 economies.

Nonetheless, the pandemic disrupted Cambodia’s tourism industry on an unprecedented scale. At the height of the pandemic in 2020-21, the number of tourist arrivals contracted sharply by 82.6 percent to 0.8 million, from 6.6 million in 2019. Tourist arrivals have not recovered to pre-pandemic levels so far. The total number of foreign visitors in 2023 only reached 82.5 percent of the 2019 level, reflecting the pandemic’s scarring effect on the country’s travel and tourism industry.

Insufficient infrastructure and product offerings

Our recently published 2023 Annual Consultation Report on Cambodia highlights long-standing structural challenges in the tourism industry, which should be addressed to support the post-pandemic recovery and its further development.

Limited hard and soft infrastructure is one of the major bottlenecks holding back tourism development. In particular, insufficient long-haul and direct flights from and to major cities cause inconveniences for overseas tourists.

The country’s newly built Siem Reap Angkor International Airport and Techo Takhmao International Airport which is under construction and on track for opening next year, are expected to facilitate and drive more leisure and business travels to the country.

Furthermore, Cambodia’s labor force is not equipped with sufficient skills. The latest Travel and Tourism Development Index 2021 compiled by the World Economic Forum suggests that Cambodia is trailing behind other regional economies with regard to human resources and labor market conditions.

Other challenges weighing on Cambodia’s attractiveness include the lack of diverse tourism product offerings and insufficient tourism promotion.

Cambodia’s tourism products are highly concentrated in cultural heritage, especially revolving around the Angkor Wat, the world’s largest religious structure. However, there are very few other tourist attractions in the vicinity of the Angkor Archeological Park and a limited number of shopping centers. Souvenirs or locally manufactured products also appear to be scarce in the market.

For overseas tourists, the availability of international hotel brands is an important hygiene factor, but they remain fairly limited in Cambodia relative to other tourism powerhouses in Asia. Hence, there is still plenty of room to invest in quality hotels with better facilities.

Post-pandemic strategies for the tourism industry

What can Cambodia do to make itself a sweet tourism spot and take on a prominent role in the region?

First, a major effort should be made to diversify the tourism industry from Angkor Wat-focused tourism products and related promotional campaigns should be launched. Thanks to its rich cultural heritage and natural beauty, Cambodia should also leverage them to build more tourist attractions, focus more on community-based tourism and ecotourism, while building the necessary infrastructure.

For instance, in addition to the regular tours to the Angkor Archeological Park and cultural village, the Siem Reap province can develop an area specifically designed for tourists to embrace cultural and historical values, such as offering a homestay experience featuring the lifestyle during the Angkor era. New tourist attractions, such as the Angkor Wonder Garden as well as Angkor Wildlife and Aquarium, are steps in the right direction.

Rich in natural resources and biodiversity, Cambodia not only has many protected areas, such as national parks, wildlife sanctuaries, but it is also home to rare animal species in Asia, including the Mekong River dolphins. The Tonle Sap Lake is one of the potential ecotourism sites, yet the tourism facilities and amenities such as boat rides remain weak. In this regard, these ecotourism sites and their supportive infrastructure should be further developed.

Tourism campaigns should also be broadened by focusing not only on historical and ecotourism sites assets but also on other attractions, such as Cambodia’s beautiful coastal areas.

Second, the government should provide more financial support for critical tourism-related investment. More budget should be allocated to the development of hard and soft infrastructure for all tourism segments, including cultural/ historical, community-based tourism, and ecotourism.

Investments are necessary to improve transport infrastructure by increasing the number of long-haul and direct flights; build more entertainment locations, theme parks, and shopping centers around tourist attractions; build more accommodations with better facilities; upgrade the skills of the labor force; and encourage more micro, small and medium enterprises to produce souvenirs.

Third, harnessing digitalization is key to promoting tourism and facilitating travel. At present, Cambodia is seen as an add-on itinerary rather than a main tourist destination by most travelers. The country should place greater efforts into promoting itself as a preferred tourist destination to the global tourists through digital marketing campaigns. To revive its travel and tourism industry in the post pandemic new normal, Cambodia should adopt digital technology to modernize its immigration system; facilitate visa application; and improve ticketing and reservation for tourists.

In early 2021, the government released a roadmap aimed at turning Cambodia into a quality, safe and sustainable tourist destination as well as attracting 7 million tourists to the Kingdom by 2025. While these lofty targets may be challenging to realize in the short term, with planning, investment, and promotion, Cambodia has the potential to become a world-class tourist destination in the long term.

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Enabling ecotourism development in Cambodia

Maurice andres rawlins, elisabeth steinmayr, werner kornexl.

Iconic Cambodian landscapes, such as the Cardamom Mountains have a wealth of natural assets that allow for new and exciting multi-day tourism itineraries for domestic and international markets. In addition, the remoteness of Cambodia’s picturesque forested landscapes also entices the mid to high-end tourist market, who are looking to unwind and unplug.

Cambodia’s tourism industry is a key contributor to its economic growth. It provides a sizable contribution to Cambodia’s economy (21 percent of GDP in 2019) , which has been on the rise for the past ten years. The ecotourism sector was a notable part of this and, in recent years, was showing signs of even greater growth than the rest of the tourism industry.

A recent slowdown in the growth of tourism in Cambodia , however, points to a need to diversify the sector. Angkor Wat in Siem Reap has been the main attraction to Cambodia, and while the iconic temples still draw crowds, statistics show that growth in arrivals to Angkor sites is slowing. Experts suggest that the decelerated growth of tourist arrivals is due to fewer Chinese tourists visiting Siem Reap.  Instead, these tourists are increasingly drawn to Cambodia’s coastal areas. Another reason is that higher competition from neighboring countries, especially Vietnam, is drawing Chinese and South Korean tourists away from Siem Reap.

Trends of increased visitors to ecotourism sites in Cambodia indicate that ecotourism is a product that could be further developed to harness its potential, and the Cambodian government wants to capitalize on this potential. Developing tourism can also create much-needed revenues to help manage Cambodia’s extensive protected area (PA) network and protect important economic services provided by forests in the PAs.

“Invest now in ecotourism development to: DIVERSIFY Cambodia’s tourism product with ecotourism offerings; CREATE jobs and STIMULATE rural economies; and PROTECT the forest assets that underpin ecotourism” is one of the main key messages that has been formulated in a newly released World Bank advisory report on Enabling Ecotourism Development in Cambodia ; a report which has been developed to support the Royal Government of Cambodia in the sustainable development of ecotourism. One of the main tenets promoted in the report is around investing and diversifying the country’s tourism, which is part of the Bank’s broader strategy for sustainable management of the country’s natural capital and strengthening its links to the economy. 

COVID-19 is an additional reason for diversifying the country’s tourism offerings. “BUILD BACK BETTER after COVID-19 in the tourism sector by investing in ECOTOURISM” is another key message being promoted in the World Bank’s advisory report. As more people become unemployed due to the fallout of COVID-19, they are more likely to turn to illegal activities to supplement incomes, such as illegal wildlife trafficking and logging, and clearing forests for agriculture. The promotion of ecotourism development in Cambodia is, therefore, an essential element of Cambodia’s post-COVID-19 recovery strategy. It is also an essential ingredient that can pave the way towards the building back of a more resilient economy, which in turn can boost sustainable livelihoods and rural job creation for the Cambodian people.

In response to the need to diversify Cambodia’s tourism product and respond to the COVID-19 through the development of ecotourism, this new World Bank report provides five key recommendations each with strategic actions for:

• Mitigating the impacts of COVID-19 on the ecotourism industry.
• Strengthening regulatory frameworks for ecotourism.
• Strengthening key institutions and partnerships for ecotourism development.
• Strengthening ecotourism destination planning, management, and marketing.
• Enabling and supporting the private sector in tourism. 

The World Bank will support the Royal Government of Cambodia on implementing these recommendations and developing its ecotourism sector through the Cambodia Sustainable Landscape and Ecotourism Project (CSLE) . The analytical work on ecotourism will also be expanded to Cambodia’s coastal areas with funding from the PROBLUE trust fund and will inform a regional approach for ecotourism development with funding from the PROGREEN trust fund .

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Tourism in Cambodia: Opportunities and Challenges

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During the 1960s, Cambodia was one of the foremost tourism destinations in Southeast Asia. Attracted primarily by the culture of Phnom Penh and the temples of Angkor, between 50,000 and 70,000 tourists visited the country each year (Hall and Ringer 2000), a significant number in those early days of mass international travel. However, as a result of the political turmoil of the following two decades, Cambodia became off-limits to international tourists and it was only in the early 1990s that it regained its place on the international tourism map. Following the Paris Peace Accords, some 22,000 people visited Cambodia in 1991, more than doubling to around 50,000 the following year although, according to Chheang (2008a, 291), the majority were UN personnel. In 1993, the year that international tourist arrivals were first officially recorded, the country adopted an open-door policy to attract foreign investment in tourism and since then, the sector has grown rapidly (Grihault 2011). Some 118,000 tourists visited Cambodia in 1993, a number that increased to almost half a million by 2000 and subsequently grew remarkably to more than 4.5 million by 2014 (MoT 2015). The economic contribution of tourism has increased commensurately. In 1996, tourism receipts amounted to US$118 million; by 2014, the figure had risen to US$2,736 million (MoT 2015).

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Tourism in Cambodia

Development of the tourism sector in cambodia from 1995 to 2021.

Revenues from tourism

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The Introduction of ICT for Sustainable Development of the Tourism Industry in Cambodia

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Doubling Down on Tourism Today will Constrain Cambodia’s Policy Options Tomorrow

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COVID-19 has given Cambodia an opportunity to rethink its reliance on tourism. Will the government take it?

Anyone following the news out of Cambodia is likely to have encountered two conflicting sentiments regarding the current COVID-19 situation.

On the one hand, in late July, the spokesperson for the Ministry of Health and the chairwoman of the COVID-19 Vaccination Committee proclaimed that the country is at a critical  “redline,” an assessment which led to government-mandated lockdowns in Siem Reap starting in the middle of September.

On the other hand, thanks to swift vaccination progress, the country’s tourism leaders are already preparing for a potential re-opening of Siem Reap to vaccinated tourists in the last quarter of 2021, with the government hinting at the possibility of reducing quarantine measures for incoming visitors.

Although only about 82,000 foreign tourists were reported to have visited Cambodia in the first four months of 2021, the government is already making arrangements with foreign partners, including requesting that the Philippines encourage more tourists to visit Cambodia and making plans with Singapore to organize a tourism fair . More importantly, the Ministry of Tourism has set up an online tourism vocational school registration system to encourage participation in its training program for workers in the tourism sector.

Local authorities have also described tourism as an indispensable path towards economic recovery in the post-pandemic world. According to the Roadmap for Recovery of Cambodian Tourism During and Post COVID-19 , the government envisions a reformed tourism sector that emphasizes quality, safety, and sustainability, while also planning to bring back 7 million international tourists each year by 2025 and 11 million domestic tourists by 2023.

One thing that this health crisis should have revealed to the government, however, are the ways in which an economy which is over-reliant on travel and tourism is unsustainable and susceptible to shocks. More importantly, this development approach defies experts’ calls for economic diversification into higher value-added sectors. Without deliberate consideration, policies undertaken during the COVID-19 pandemic might lock Cambodia in a loop of perpetual underdevelopment and over-reliance on tourism.

Therefore, before doubling down further on the tourism sector as a COVID-19 recovery strategy, the Kingdom must understand how its decisions will impact the range of future policy options.

Path Dependency and Tourism

The path dependency theory argues that history matters and that decisions made in the past can affect those possible in the future. This phenomenon is caused by “lock-ins” or self-reinforcing processes that continuously force an actor to make the same decision or oppose changes despite having other viable options.

A nation can be locked onto a fixed development path because of its dependence on the existing structures: namely, assets, competencies, institutional patterns, and power relations. As a result, the cost of switching to a different path is so high that it is not even worth considering. For instance, if investment is poured into tourism-specific infrastructure or projects such as tourist attractions, the local community and authorities will have less room to diversify their economic activities out of the tourism sector unless they have access to a large pool of public or private funds.

On the other hand, lock-ins can also be reinforced by the increasing returns generated from the chosen path. For example, the profits generated from pro-tourism policies are more likely to keep businesses doubling down on their investment in the sector and limiting incentives to invest in other productive or higher value-added industries.

Nonetheless, destinations can still break free from existing lock-ins and create new paths toward a more sustainable development trajectory. This would require local authorities and major actors in the tourism and non-tourism industries to choose the right path during a “ critical juncture ,” a situation of extreme challenge and uncertainty in which policies and institutional reforms may result in lasting changes.

The Case of Central Australia

Central Australia is an interesting case study that Cambodia should investigate, particularly related to this idea of “critical juncture.” Central Australia is a sizable and sparsely populated desert region that experienced a tourism boom from the 1980s. It became the center for large-scale tourism projects with limited diversification into other economic activities and products, making it substantially vulnerable to the boom-and-bust cycle. Foreseeably, the region was significantly impacted by the global financial crisis in 2008 and continued to experience a significant slump until 2012.

What the Australian government failed to grasp was the fact that the 2008 financial crisis was one of the aforementioned critical junctures. Consequently, their inaction in diagnosing tourism policies in Central Australia and initiating reforms prevented the region from achieving sustainable development.

Rather than perceiving the consequences as a sign of structural weaknesses, the Australian authorities pointed almost exclusively to the external shocks as the cause of the extreme downturn. Hence, the government persistently poured more investment into maintaining the status quo through extensive marketing campaigns and infrastructure upgrades.

Local authorities overlooked the entrenched culture of overdependence on the government and external investors for capital, the lack of entrepreneurial capabilities, and the limited collaboration among key industry players on the creation of new products and services. As a result, Central Australia was trapped in a perpetual pattern of chasing the boom while having to bear the increasing costs of replacing decaying infrastructure, seeking new markets, and attracting attention from the central government.

Central Australia missed the opportunity to reassess its development path and mobilize support for a more productive trajectory during the global financial crisis. Cambodia should learn from an example like this and must not brush off the COVID-19 pandemic as just a random catastrophe, but consider it as a critical juncture for meaningful changes and reforms.

COVID-19 as a Critical Juncture

Essentially, the COVID-19 pandemic can be regarded as a critical juncture. While the consequences of the virus are widely known, many disregard the possibilities it presents for rethinking existing systems for a more sustainable and resilient future. This platitude about how every crisis presents great opportunities is often overlooked, despite the educational values of such experiences.

A country’s inability to mitigate the consequences of crises are symptoms of institutional shortcomings that are themselves defects of the established system. And actors engaging in the system generally have incentives to swiftly act because disaster recovery necessitates hard choices, strengthening political will and consensus for change.

This health crisis has catalyzed efforts to reassess the country’s healthcare system and the pandemic preparedness programs. It has spurred discussions on expanding social protection coverage, attracting investment for 21st-century classrooms, and encouraging digital adoption within the government and businesses.

So why miss the opportunity to reimagine the tourism sector and propose solutions for economic diversification for the post-pandemic world?

Here is what the pre-pandemic status quo looked like: Cambodia’s spectacular cultural and natural heritages became attractive destinations for both western and eastern travelers. As a result, investments are predominantly pulled into established destinations, such as Siem Reap and Sihanoukville. Nonetheless, this lack of diversification and the limited number of tourism destinations and products has led to the slowing growth of tourists visiting the Kingdom and a decline in daily spending.

More importantly, the surge in the number of Chinese visitors, which accounted for over 35 percent of all international arrivals in 2019, led local authorities to implement the “China-Ready” strategy that aims to attract 2 million tourists from China annually. This decision, in turn, pushed the Kingdom to create more tourism products catered towards the Chinese market . While it is uncertain what kind of experience is deemed suited for the Chinese travelers, recent development trends point to the dubious gambling industry as the number of casinos jumped by 53 percent in 2018.

As I have previously outlined , before the pandemic, Cambodia’s tourism was already facing several issues, including the notable economic leakages, the potential undermining of culture, and environmental impacts. However, I have also argued that there are other tourism approaches that Cambodia can investigate, such as Bhutan’s model of valuing quality over quantity.

Taking into consideration the Kingdom’s post-pandemic tourism plan, which generally accentuates the need to attract more tourists, I cannot help but worry that the government is overlooking the opportunity to use this critical juncture to reevaluate the current tourism model.

If the status quo is maintained, it could potentially exacerbate the nation’s dependency on the tourism sector and the Chinese market, contradicting the national priority of economic and market diversification. More importantly, it can also promote the emergence of contentious industries and mass tourism initiatives at the costs of social order and the environment.

Having a comprehensive post-pandemic recovery plan is essential, but what is most crucial for countries during this critical juncture is to choose the right development path. Fortunately, the past has already provided invaluable knowledge about the existing system that can inform this decision – if only the relevant authorities look back before taking their next step forward.

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Essay: Cambodia industries – agriculture, tourism, textile

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Cambodia have been an agricultural country since ancient times and have been farming rice ever since. Rice is Cambodia’s main food source and an important indicator in the economy as it contributes to about a third of the Cambodia’s economy. Cambodia’s  agriculture sector have received an annual growth of 5.3% from the year 2004 to 2012 which was one of the highest in world (World Bank, 2015). In 2013, Cambodia became the world’s fifth largest rice exporter and second biggest exporter of premium jasmine rice which reached 378,856 tons (Hunt, 2014). Cambodia’s rice export could possibly reach its full potential producing up to 3 million tons of rice with a total export value of $2.1 billion which is roughly 20% of the GDP. Royal government of Cambodia have selected 3 pronged strategy- productivity enhancement, diversification and commercial agriculture to sustain agricultural production (SNEC, 2010). Agricultural development have increase the wages of farmers in Cambodia’s country side and have decrease the poverty rate from 50% in 2007 to only 18% in 2012 (World Bank, 2015). Because Cambodia is still a developing country many of the nation’s population are farmers. But because the economy keep on growing more and more farmers were able to afford tractors and harvesters instead of using cattle to plough paddy fields. The microfinance sector saw a rise in demand for loans from small businesses mostly associated with agricultural purposes in the first quarter of 2011. Domesticate lending have totalled $473.4 million at the end of the first quarter of 2011with the number of borrowers increased up to 14.4% (Makara, 2011).

2. Tourism sector

Cambodia is a country filled with cultural and architectural history dating back to ancient times. The main tourist attraction in Cambodia are the historical heritage sites such as Angkor Wat, which is also pictured in the center of the Cambodian national flag. In 2013, the number of international tourist arrivals have increased to 4.2 million which is 17.5% higher than 2012 (MOT, 2013). Siem Reap is a province located in the northern part Cambodia is the main tourist attraction which is an important factor to the economy because 50% of the occupations in Siem Reap are related to tourism industry (Biddulph, 2010). Many businesses in the area are engaged to tourism from luxury hotels and restaurant to a budget friendly guesthouse and street vendors. Uk Someth, Apsara Authority’s deputy director have quoted that the 3 key factors to develop Siem Reap are economic development, social relations and environmental protection. But because of the rise of tourists visiting Siem reap every year, many of residents were trained to work as tour guides, carpenters, servers and many other craftsmanship’s. Despite having many tourist visiting Cambodia, there are still threats of sex tourist seeking child prostitution. US State Department’s Trafficking in Persons reported in 2014 that tourist from other parts of Asia, Europe and United States travel to Cambodia to engage in underage prostitution. Cambodian government have a law the will penalise the offender ranging from 2 to 15 years in prison for sexually exploiting children (Dombrowski, 2015).

3. Textile or garment industry

The garment industry in Cambodia is considered to be one of the three pillar of the country’s economy alongside agriculture and tourism sector. It has contributes to about 16% of Cambodia’s economy (textile world Asia, 2013). In 2014, exports of the garment and textile industry have increased a total of $5.3 billion which is higher than the previous year which contributes about $4.96 billion (GMAC, N/A). Despite the increase in the number of exports, there has been many controversies surrounding the industry over the minimum wage of garment factory workers in Cambodia over the past few years. Trade unions NGOs and Cambodian garment workers have been on strike demanding a higher minimum wages. The minimum wage was increased from $80 to $100 but it’s still not enough to the relevant living wage of $283 (Cambodia daily, 2014).  Despite the actions of the government to raise the minimum wage to $128 per month in November 2014, workers are still campaigning to raise the minimum wage to $177 (LICADHO, N/A). Many of the world renown fashion brand that have established factories in Cambodia have agreed to increase payment for the clothes that is made in Cambodia such as H&M, Zara and Primark they have also request to see cooperation with trade unions (Industriall-union, 2014) Apart from low wages, the garment industry other controversies such as poor working conditions and with low wages, factories workers are most likely to be malnutrition and too weak to perform well on the job. Human Right Watch have been complaining about the inhumane working condition and labour abuse. Senior women’s right researcher at HRW, Aruna Kashyap have requested that the government to take measures to enforce the labour law and defending workers from abuse (Kaplan, 2015).

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• DOI: 10.24025/2306-4420.67.2022.278790
• Corpus ID: 260075387

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• Published in Proceedings of Scientific… 22 December 2022

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