1

Economic Security Appraisal and Other Security-Related Risks in Cambodia

According to the Cambodian context, economic security refers to a situation resulting from attaining steady streams of income and other financial resources in order to support decent living presently and in the near future. For instance, Sihanoukville gained economic security when the Chinese arrived in the small town and set up business enterprises aiming at generating a conducive investment zone where people could come and invest in different ventures. Sihanoukville’s economic security developed swiftly due to the ‘Belt and Road’ project. The growth of the underdeveloped town led to extensive urbanization and industrialization hence causing social and environmental alterations. The entire town was under construction once the Chinese landed within its borders (Green, 2019). Economics experts claim that Sihanoukville's economic security growth was highly extensive and the city could not have handled the intensive growth due to its small capability and lack of participation from the Cambodian people. In other words, the town's infrastructure was not designed for excessive capital streams. The result made basic commodities rise hence complaints from the locals on the relevance of the immense development. In addition, barring Cambodians from taking part in Sihanoukville's infrastructural development was one of the downsides of the project. Even though the coastal areas are public spaces, the investors did not build any supporting infrastructure in this zone- affordable accommodations, eateries, and restrooms hence Cambodian did not get to enjoy outings and other festivities. The expensive Chinese projects failed to integrate Cambodian culture into the development project and hence failed to accurately meet the needs and demands of the majority of the people. Even though some benefits such as affordable rental subscriptions and sufficient real estate are accorded to few people, such benefits do not spread to all Cambodians but only a few enjoy these advantages. At the end of it all, Cambodians never got to secure jobs that would give them a steady income and decent life.

2

Understanding Economics Security from the Cambodian Context

 Presently, the Cambodian economy is designed based on an open market system where economic development is at an all-time high for the past ten years. In 2018, Cambodia recorded a $24.57 billion gross domestic product. Even though it's per capita revenue is gradually rising, it's still below average compared to its neighboring nations. Cambodia relies on textile and tourism sectors while its agricultural sector remains one of its primary sources of economic progress as most of its citizens practice farming due to their rural setting (Chheang, 2017). Cambodia’s service department is highly focused on trading happenings and catering to other connected service industries. Recently, Cambodia that experts found oil and gas ores around its coastal areas hence a promising future for the developing country. In the past, the Cambodian government insisted on transforming the economic system into a strategic economy hence the current market influence system. This led to significant economic growth due to the increased economic activities triggered by foreign aids, importation, and exportation.

3

China-Cambodia Collaboration Background

            Even though these nations do not have much in common, since time immemorial China had a significant national and profitable association with Cambodia. Chinese people make up 3% of the Cambodian population. Despite the discrimination against the Chinese people by the Khmer Rouge, the Chinese people emerged as a successful business community hence a key factor in driving the Cambodian economy. The commercial relationship began when Cambodia met with China in medieval times during the Khmer empire (Sambath, 2018). In the past, China used Cambodia as a counterweight factor during the Vietnam impact. All through the 20 century, communist sections of China supported Khmer Rouge's administration during the Cambodian war. These historical relations led to the development of the relations between the two nations.

 4

Foreign Investments

            Based on the Cambodia situation, foreign investment is good for the country's economy. This is because foreign investment brings with it superior skills which are then turned into functional information relevant to the rest of the citizens. For instance, Sihanoukville grew due to the tremendous activities caused by Chinese investments (Ly, 2018). The Chinese were able to make use of Cambodian raw materials to convert the city into an economic hub hence attracting tourists from all parts of the world. In summary, even though not perfect foreign investment truly sparks economic growth which in turn strengthens the economic security of the nation. As stated earlier, Cambodia is an open market thus helps it to attract numerous foreign investors.

5

The Implication of Economics Security Issues

 One of the most important factors is that the Cambodian economy gained momentum after years of declining growth. Experts claim that the economy will grow at a 3.5% rate compared to the past decade (Heng, & Po, 2017). The improvement emerges from foreign investment and proper business policies hence preventing any impending financial crisis that would have emerged from the international economic meltdowns. The growth of the industrial sector especially textile or value addition industries led to both short and long term projections. The three most affected industrial sectors are industrialized exportations, tourism, and building. These industrial sectors contributed an estimated 70% of the entire employment sector. In some areas, poverty might increase to 11 due to income loss caused by the pandemic.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Reference

Chheang, V. (2017). The political economy of Chinese investment in Cambodia.

Green, W. N. (2019). From rice fields to financial assets: Valuing land for microfinance in Cambodia. Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers, 44(4), 749-762.

Heng, K., & Po, S. (2017). Cambodia and China’s Belt and Road Initiative: Opportunities, challenges and future directions. UC occasional paper series, 1(2), 1-18.

Ly, B. (2018). How China influence Cambodia from the past to the present for the case of politics, diplomacy, military and economic relations perspective.

Sambath, P. (2018). Cambodia-China Relation: Past, Present and Future. Sem data. Disponível em:< http://www. ncku. edu. tw/cseas/98CSEAS/report% 20SEA/CAM/cam11% 20phou, 20.