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(1) Promoting culture and/or kindness of people is an attractive factor for tourism
I sincerely thank our citizens for their joint force with the Royal Government and all sectors to promote the good points (about Cambodia) […] these days, an individual has become an idol, a public figure, without having to have a role in the government or any other important portfolio. Influencers build their capabilities from being unknown persons to characters known and/or followed by millions of people in just one year or in a short period of time. This is the power of social media. Each character can show positive or negative points (in society) […] not everywhere in our country or society is perfect, but we have to choose which to promote and promote it well, more positively, and by every means. It is not just promoting about tourism alone. People can promote the culture, and the kindness of our people is also an attractive factor […] it has now been easier to share information/postings from one to another and/or to many. Let us make sure that each and every citizen is a promoter […]
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(2) Actively organizes a mechanism, package, and working group to attract tourists
The tourist product in the green season (I no longer call it the low season as requested) is the season in which our country is in the rainy season period and the leaves are growing green. In this period, if we look at foreign countries, most of them are in the holiday season too. We should work on how to attract tourists to come during this season. Definitely, we have competition with many tourist areas, because countries in Europe also try to attract tourists during that time […] technically, there are two types of promotion. The first is passive, and the other is more of an active form […] we have been preparing this matter continuously through meetings and have reached the point of preparing a mechanism, packages, and organizing working groups […] the last few meetings have been about clarifying the direction, streamlining packages to attract customers in an active way, assigning forces, encouraging involved parties to work, and preparing packages to provide incentives […] we have reached the point of making it appear in concrete form/actions […]
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(3) Reducing entrance fee, Simplifying procedures to and promoting destinations suitable for filming interests
We have organized a number of tourism packages, such as promoting (destinations) – such as temples, islands, or somewhere that are suitable for filming. We organize packages to encourage them, reduce the entrance fee, reduce and simplify various procedures to attract their interests […] some film crews from abroad […] are not bothered to spend 100,000 to 200,000 dollars for (the application fee for filming in the target area) […] but they are seeking importantly to have safety for and ease of operation to their work. When I met with a film association sometimes ago, there was a suggestion brought up […]
That when the script has already been passed by the Ministry of Culture (and Fine Arts), and they are applying to film somewhere, please don’t demand (to check) the script again. It takes a long time. In other words, you are not experts […] the Ministry of Tourism discussed with the Ministry of Culture whether we should organize a joint task force to coordinate this matter […] to make sure that having received the license, and while working on shooting the film, there has to be someone to arrange (a smooth operation at) the location […] I met them in the past and will meet them again about helping to strengthen the film industry […]
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(4) To provide hospitality from landing to boarding the plane
I thank the General Department of Immigration, the State Secretariat of Civil Aviation, as well as the relevant provincial administrations, authorities, and all our authorities who have worked together to (address unresolving issues) […] there are issues that are caused by human, some by the work system, and some by equipment. We have (made stringent efforts to) adjust these three. Previously, visitors had to file for a visa manually, with complicated procedures, including customs, health, and immigration. Now, we have combined them into an electronic system […] we will prepare simple procedures that avoid the use of paper in the near future. In the Angkor area, we already have this work done. Where the Angkor guards had to run asking guests to check their tickets, now they have a machine to do that. Some guests scan QR codes […] and we must prepare such facilitation at all the points from (landing at) the airport to (boarding) the plane […]
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(5) More night life activities for Kompong Cham, Siem Reap city and Angkor area
The AI (artificial intelligence) era or the digital era is a fast-paced information dissemination era, which requires us to respond quickly, especially regarding tourist destinations and other negative things that happen since it is related to the tourists to make their decisions whether to come or not to come […] in Phnom Penh, we have some night activities […] but in Kampong Cham, it is quiet at night (but) there seem to have many people. We may have to organize/discuss what activities there soon. In Angkor area, I once suggested to the Minister of Culture and Fine Arts to consider enliven activities in the quiet temple area at night […] at the elephant wrestling ground, can there be a night show? When it is almost the closing time to visit the temple right by nightfall, before they leave, (such a show would) draw and gather them to the show somehow. It is safe because there is light on the way, […] in the Siem Reap city, so far there is only this Pub Street […] how about organizing another one […] setting it up as a Khmer music area, and don’t mix it with the Pub Street. Leave the Pub Street to the internationals […]
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(6) Think about integrated tourist destinations by group of provinces
I have asked the provincial grouping of Siem Reap, Kampong Thom, Preah Vihear, and Oddar Meanchey to think about integrated tourism destinations. It can’t just be a few temples. The first goal is, what else is there in Siem Reap besides a few areas like Kulen, Tonle Sap Lake, in some communities […] I noticed that some places have homestays […] sometimes we don’t need to spend a lot (to organize this). We don’t need to set up infrastructure or train people. The people there already know how to do it. They just need help promoting, preparing a package for them […] and secondly, the neighboring areas outside the province. (We) can’t advertise everything and everywhere in our country to the world at once […] however, we can put together a package for tourism, which would include destinations that might attract tourists to other parts of the country […] (for instance,) the provinces that are bordering with sea […] while each tried to create own (tourist destinations) in the province, I encourage them to make a package together […] and create (a package) without waiting for a sea festival […]
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(9) To promote not only agricultural products and food but also handicraft products
Green belt or the tourist area where we promote exports of local products to the hotels/tourist destinations. Tourists need to stay and eat, which is an opportunity to promote not only agricultural products and food (but) also handicraft products […] let us try to increase the number of products in the community to be sold in the markets […] our community has a lot of potential. Please work with the community […] and various actors should participate in the tourism sector […] at the same time, to welcome tourist arrivals by giving each of them a krama, sometimes we can include the cost in the ticket price. We buy this krama from the community. If, say, 600,000 tourists come to Siem Reap a year, we would definitely sell 600,000 krama, and sometimes tourists buy more from the market […] this is a market creation. I am encouraging you to buy from the community itself […] with the government trying to organize this, it would create demands, and the private sector team also has a mechanism working with Artisans Angkor on some handicrafts […]
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(10) More events at national level like Angkor Sangkranta would be organized
This year, we will organize the Angkor Sangkranta event again in Siem Reap. Hopefully, the tourism sector will include (this information) in the promotion package for the New Year time. The “Celebrating Cambodia” event can also be organized by the end of the year. We will continue to work hard to organize more (such events) at the national level. The tourism sector always wants this information quickly to be included in the promotion package. I urge the Ministry of Tourism to prepare the annual schedule quickly. May the influencers, young people, and actors with many followers, continue to help promote these achievements to promote Cambodia. I thank those who sometimes prepare TikTok clips, wearing various martial arts costumes, performing and showing our culture […]
(11) Though built by the Cambodian ancestors, the Angkor Wat is a human heritage
That some from abroad write “the temple run is shaking Angkor” […] is only spreading propaganda to harms Cambodia. Once, they blame that no one came to visit the country. When tourists come, they make up a different story […] I am urging, however, respect to the conservation principles. Don’t dress inappropriately in that place. Don’t act excessively […] The other day, I saw people wearing foreign cultural clothes to take pictures […] let them take pictures […] even though it was built by the Cambodian ancestors, the Angkor Wat is a human heritage, so humanity has the right to celebrate and love it. There must be more people who love our culture. Let us not love it alone […] previously, there was a religious influencer who said that Angkor Wat was not built by the Khmer ancestors. Should he dare to say that at Angkor, I bet, fire would flare. Where does he pick that history from? […] the Khmer ancestors built it. Absolutely, that’s the case […] please train our guides to tell tourists the correct history […]
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(12) The new airport will not only be a passengers’ transit but a regional logistics center
I am urging the relevant parties to speed up negotiations on the prices (included in the package for the launch of the first phase of Techo International Airport in July 2025) so that tourists can include it in the tourism package and sell it as a package […] hopefully, this new airport will not only be a place for transit passengers, but also become a regional logistics center. We are negotiating with some giant companies regarding logistics, such as DHL GPS, etc., and hoping to get results soon. We will simplify customs procedures in this preparation. Hopefully, it will become an integrated system. May the State Secretariat for Civil Aviation and all parties review and facilitate this task, which also include the transfer from the old airport to the new airport, especially the control system, so that the official opening (operation) day will be smooth […] negotiations are underway with CATS as far as I understand […]
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(13) Cambodian tourism works if we work together
We must work as a whole. Since the beginning of my mandate, I have urged that there should be a joint mechanism between the state and the private sector, and make decisions and monitor implementation together […] CTB (Cambodia Tourism Marketing and Promotion Board) is a state and private actor, an independent actor, interacting with the ministry, with the private tourism sector, coordinating with foreign actors as partners, just like in Thailand they have TAT or Tourisms Authority of Thailand. Many countries have similar ones […] we must be of the opinion that Cambodian tourism only works if we work together. We are not competing with each other. We must compete with other countries with similar tourist attractiveness, to attract tourists to Cambodia […] let us clearly divide the tasks to be done, together with the tourism sector, the private sector, organize a mechanism as a synergy, one actor, one mind, one heart, and one loyalty […]
(14) Striving to be a single-player system holding the key to success
Our country is small, with many challenges, and despite the potential it has, our capabilities and capabilities are still limited. We need to help each other, compensate each other with financial resources, human resources, and techniques. With the great potential we have, we must strive to be a single-player system that becomes a single national force which is the key to success […] the board of directors met to plan the internal structure of CTB, organize the roles and responsibilities of the external marketing department […] in all efforts made, from March, I hope activities for positive engagement, which directly attract customers with special packages. The Ministry of Economy and Finance has prepared its part already […] setting up a mechanism is difficult, but making it sustainable is even more difficult […]
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(15) NGS is ongoing and expanding, MCL is off
At the closing session of the annual conference of the Ministry of Education (Youth and Sports,) I raised the issue regarding New Generation Schools (NGS) and Modern Learning Centers (MLC) […] please note that the new generation schools and modern learning centers are different. For NGS, we currently have 13 schools in operation and plan to put another one into operation in 2026. Not only that we do not have plans to close NGS, we will also examine the possibility of expanding them further […] for NGS, what we did stop was where parents were previously obliged to pay to this school, they no longer do so, as the state is taking care of that on their behalf […]
Then, why did I have decided to stop modern learning centers […] this kind of school is similar to NGS, but uses the BOT formula in which the private company invested for 15 years in a public school, which it firstly implements an educational project like a private school […]; secondly, it teaches full-time […] and thirdly, there are two teaching programs (in the state school) […] also invented by the ministry, MCL is a formula that involves the private sector. This formula has proven to be unacceptable because, firstly, the state has lost ownership (on the school) and, secondly, gaps of standards have been created before the eyes […]
The state paid hundreds of millions of dollars annually to invest and build public schools to provide free education to its citizens. It is impossible to take the state’s location/property for private work […] if this continues, sooner or later, everyone would ask for such invention in all provinces […] while stopping the MLC, in practice, we also allow flexibility for the closing process […]./.
