Initiative lifts Cambodia village

Once- impoverished place prospers near zone

Sihanoukville port, once an impoverished part of Cambodia’s southwestern Preah Sihanouk Province, has grown into a prosperous city like the innovation hub of Shenzhen, South China’s Guangdong Province, the People’s Daily reported Wednesday.

Located at a key juncture on the route of China’s “One Belt, One Road” initiative, the Sihanoukville Special Economic Zone ( SSEZ) is one of the first eight overseas economic and trade cooperation zones approved by the Chinese government.

“We have been greatly inspired by the ‘ Belt and Road’ initiative proposed by [ President Xi Jinping] in 2013, so we have accelerated construction of the special economic zone. The number of enterprises registered there has grown rapidly,” Cao Jianjiang, the SSEZ’s general manager, was quoted by the People’s Daily as saying.

The first phase of the park, which covers five square kilometers, has attracted 109 enterprises in the textile, clothing and leather industries, of which 94 are Chinese- funded.

About 16,000 people work in the zone, which contributes about half of the province’s economic output, the report said.

“The booming SSEZ is a model for China- Cambodia pragmatic cooperation,” Xi said during a visit to Cambodia in October 2016.

Before the arrival of Chinese companies, the village of Sihanoukville port did not have cement buildings, electricity or tap water. Eung Sarum, chief of Township Bet Trang, told the People’s Daily that the village’s residents used to make a living by growing crops and cutting down trees for lumber.

Villagers’ lives have improved since the zone’s industrial park was built, the township chief said. For example, almost every family with members employed at the industrial park is able to afford a motorcycle.

In addition, the Chinese companies have provided local villagers with free Chinese language classes, the report said, citing Kaev Boutthy, president of the Primary School of Township Bet Trang. The companies have also donated multimedia classrooms to local schools and given aid to impoverished students.

Local government officials and scholars have praised the initiative. “The ‘ Belt and Road’ initiative is about inter- connectivity, which brings new opportunities,” said Sok Chenda Sophea, secretary general of the Council for the Development of Cambodia.

Besides the industrial park, Chinese firms also made other contributions to the country’s development under the “One Belt, One Road” initiative. For instance, they built or improved 20 roads covering 2,669 kilometers, equivalent to about 35 percent of Cambodia’s highway system.