Cambodia expects to welcome around 2 million international tourists in 2022, with the hope that the number of international tourists will return to the pre-COVID-19 level of 7 million in 2026 or 2027.

While presiding over the opening ceremony of the 9th Sea Festival in Sihanoukville, Preah Sihanouk this evening, Prime Minister Samdech Akka Moha Sena Padei Techo Hun Sen said the Royal Government of Cambodia (RGC) has considered tourism as a priority sector, and as the “Green Gold”, contributing to the national socio-economic development through creating jobs, raising incomes of the people directly and indirectly, boosting on-site export, increasing national income, supporting economic growth, contributing to effective and responsible cultural preservation and protection of the environment and natural resources, and especially contributing to the development goals of becoming “an upper-middle income country by 2030” and “a high income country by 2050”.

The RGC has set to celebrate the Sea Festival, contributing to not only the promotion of tourism potentials of coastal provinces, but also the support for government policy to focus on sustainable and responsible tourism development, Samdech Techo Hun Sen continued, stressing that the potential of natural resources of Cambodia’s coastal areas, nicknamed “The Rising Star of the Southwest”, is outstanding, rich, and favourable for the development of tourism in these areas.

“These progresses cannot be achieved without the security factor, clearly proving that Cambodia has enjoyed complete peace, political stability and security,” he underlined.

The Premier reiterated the importance of maintaining peace, security and order, saying “we all must maintain the peace, at all costs, to ensure development” and “we must continue to pay close attention to maintaining security and order. Peace is at the macro level, while security and social order are both at the macro and micro levels.”

In this sense, he added, all tourism sites, not just in Preah Sihanouk province but also in other coastal provinces, and wherever there are tourists, we must strive to maintain security and social order.

Source: Agency Kampuchea Press