Japan donates $1.1 million to tribunal

The Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia. Reuters

Japan, the Khmer Rouge tribunal’s largest donor to date, has contributed a further $1.12 million to its international component, the tribunal said on Tuesday in a statement.
 

The donation brings Japan’s total contribution to both the national and international components of the tribunal to $85 million, or 32 percent of total donor contributions.
 

“On behalf of the ECCC [Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia], we would like to express our sincere appreciation for the continuous and significant financial contributions and support offered by the government of Japan.
 

“This new assistance is crucial for the ECCC to complete its mandate, without interruption in the judicial proceedings,” Tony Kranh, the tribunal’s acting director of administration, and Knut Rosandhaug, the deputy director of administration, said jointly in the statement.
 

According to the tribunal’s March 2016 financial outlook, it has so far spent a total of  $261.3 million since it began operations in 2006.
 

After Japan, the US is the second-largest foreign donor, having contributed $27 million, followed by Australia with $25 million, as of March this year. Cambodia is the fourth-largest donor, having contributed $23 million to the tribunal’s national component, as of March, followed by Germany and the European Union, which have contributed $14.5 and $15 million respectively.
 

According to the tribunal’s 2017 budget, its international component will need $20 million to operate, while its national component will need $6.4 million.
 

In a recent statement, the government pledged to donate $4.15 million for the tribunal’s national component next year, urging the UN to raise funds to cover the deficit.

Source: http://www.khmertimeskh.com/news/32642/japan-donates--1-1-million-to-tribunal/

Deeper water expected to yield more fish

Thu, 24 November 2016

Cheng Sokhorng

Just weeks ahead of the main fishing season on the Tonle Sap river, which supplies the majority of the fish used in the Kingdom’s traditional cooking sauce, prahok, government officials are predicting a better catch this season as water levels have recovered from last year’s drought.

Eng Chea San, director-general of fisheries administration at the Ministry of Agriculture, said this year’s haul from capture fisheries should increase by 20,000 tonnes, while aquaculture yields could grow by up to 20 percent.

“We expect that the fish yield will increase compared to last year, as water levels are higher and stable,” he said yesterday.

Last year, Cambodian freshwater capture fisheries and aquaculture produced 751,000 tonnes of fish. The Tonle Sap river and lake contributed more than half of this total.

Fisheries administration official Ouch Vutha agreed that higher water levels this year were a good portend for the upcoming season, especially after a prolonged drought led to a precipitous drop in last year’s production.

“This year the river levels have risen, so we expect that the fish yield will be good for prahok,” he said.

In July, the government granted 92 dai, or bag net, permits for the Tonle Sap river. Vutha said the permits cover 14 river rows, a measurement used to make sure that the bag nets do not clog up river transport lanes and are placed to capture the flow of water. The primary fishing locations are in Phnom Penh, and in Kandal and Prey Veng provinces, he said.

Keo Vitou, chief of Ponhea Leu district fisheries administration in Kandal province, said fisherman have been preparing their nets since October, but the big catch is not expected until next month, and run until sometime in January. In Kandal province alone 10 rows have been set up with 42 dai permits.

“Some dai owners started collecting fish in October in order to make a profit, however the real profit is yet to begin as farmers wait for the next full moon cycle,” he explained, referring to the lunar phase that gives the best yields.

Vitou added that the government had closely monitored which areas to grant fishing permits and that the cost of the permit was based on the best seasonal locations.

Vitou said that last year, the fish yield in Kandal province was 5,200 tonnes, a 50 percent decline from 2014.

Loa Sreang, a dai owner in Kandal province who has been fishing on the Tonle Sap river for the last 10 years, said that he paid $5,000 and $18,000 to secure two locations along the river.

“I paid different prices in different locations because I am looking to collect the most fish,” he said. “If the season is good and the government continues to crack down on illegal fishing, I hope that I will make a good profit.”

He estimated that last year he lost around $20,000 during the peak prahok season due to the impact of the drought.

Source: http://www.phnompenhpost.com/business/deeper-water-expected-yield-more-fish

Forest protection saves village

People from the Oum Saom community gather for a meeting. KT/Pav Suy

The story of the Oum Saom forestry community in Kampong Thom province is one that has been told in various forms hundreds of times in Cambodia: local residents locked in a seemingly never-ending battle against a company aiming to cut down their local forest and open plantations.

But contrary to how most of these situations end, the members of the Oum Saom community managed to secure a happy ending for themselves, forcing out the company and receiving all of their land back, allowing them to continue using the natural resources in the area that they have lived in for decades.

This happy ending did not occur without a fight though. Members of Sala Visai village, where Ou Saom forest is located, fought with the company – an acacia and rubber production group owned by prominent tycoon An Marady – for almost a decade after the firm bought a 308-hectare economic land concession in the area in 2004.

“In 2004, the company was about to clear the land to make way for acacia and rubber plantations. They deployed the excavators and bulldozers, but the villagers kept resisting by protesting,” community leader Chhoun Chhorn said.

“Because of our protests, there was an intervention from the district and provincial authority and the company decided to concede this remaining land to the community,” he said.

Mr. Chhorn added that although the land was within the economic land concession the government had granted to the company, the villagers had been living and working in the forest for such a long time that it was granted back to them.

Kampong Thom cantonment forestry administration official Kann Vutha said the land was given to the community in 2013.

“The government officially put the land under community management in 2013,” he said.

He added that there will be an agreement on the structure for more sophisticated preservation and management of the forest.

“In two weeks’ time, we will sign an agreement with the community to lay out the structure and plan to make better protection of the forest, including making an audit of the forest,” he said.

The community did not get the land back on their own though, securing backing and help from the European Union-funded Mlup Baitong Organization.

Now, 95 percent of the 322 families in the village work in agriculture in the area and collect natural products from the forest after years when almost half the village lived on only $1 per day.

Om Sophana, the deputy director of Mlup Baitong, works closely with community members and said forest preservation was benefiting the community as a whole. Their investment in the forest would pay off even more once the government officially created a preservation area.

“We will have the signing of the agreement to get official recognition from the forestry administration to preserve the forest,” he said.

“The villagers can collect non-timber forest products, including honey from bees, vegetables and fruit to sell at the market and make a living. We need to protect the remaining forest. If we don’t, it will all be gone.”

The community will be allowed to remove some trees for sale, but they will be strictly in line with preservation guidelines and renovation rules, Mr. Sophana said.

Mr. Chhorn said that since the land had come under the control of community members, they have seen little to no forestry crime.

“We go in groups of five or six and patrol the area. We do it only during the day because no one comes at night to cut the wood. We rarely catch loggers. When we catch them, we just arrest them and educate them,” he said.

“In serious cases, we call the forestry administration officials to take action.”

EU ambassador to Cambodia George Edgar lauded the project and said the success of the community was evidence that more efforts like this were needed to be made to protect the country’s forests.

“The support to the community forest management project is another example of the EU’s commitment to work with Cambodia in the management of its natural resources,” he said.

“As one of Cambodia’s key development partners, I am delighted to see that project beneficiaries’ lives have improved and that they are now able to enjoy their rights to land and to food.”

Source: http://www.khmertimeskh.com/news/32690/forest-protection-saves-village/

Giant rare fish caught by local people along Mekong, Kratie Cambodia in around 2007, it was died after taking out from the water. 

GE to help electrify Cambodia

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   23 November 2016
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A partnership with General Electric (GE), the Boston-based American multinational conglomerate, will be the best way forward for Cambodia to meet its 2035 goal of reducing carbon dioxide emissions by three million tons annually and electrifying 100 percent of rural areas, representatives from the company and the US ambassador told a workshop at the Ministry of Mines and Energy yesterday.

President of GE’s Asean division Wouter Van Wersch stated that the company was ideally positioned to deliver what the government needs, due to its diverse energy portfolio.

“We not only see the opportunity for GE to contribute to Cambodia’s infrastructure in power generation, power transmission, but also in healthcare and the aviation sector,” Mr. Van Wersch said. “We will support Cambodia with our best and latest technology, by improving the productivity and efficiency of equipment that will ultimately help to reduce the cost of electricity and also to reduce the emission impact on the environment.”

“We will work with the Ministry of Mines and Energy to increase power capacity in the country, and we want to invest more to [bring] the right technology and increase the [technical] capacity of the Cambodian people. We will bring the best technology available,” he added.

US Ambassador William Heidt also voiced his support of GE’s technical expertise.

“For the last 15 years, Cambodia has made huge progress expanding the power grid to rural areas and delivering more reliable and cheaper power. GE will present new technology and solutions on power to Cambodia. The workshop today is a concrete example of how the US business community can contribute to sustainable economic development here in Cambodia,” he said.

The Minister for Mines and Energy Suy Sem stressed at the workshop that Cambodia was facing increasing energy demands, both in the public and private sectors. He also highlighted the government’s efforts in connecting rural Cambodia to the national grid.

“The government is working on big power transmission lines to connect with all areas across the country, and to develop reliable sources of electricity at affordable prices for the Cambodian people,” said Mr. Sem.  

There are 14,073 villages nationwide and by 2020, the government expects to install electricity lines in all of them. The government also has a target of providing electricity to 70 percent of all households nationwide by 2030.

About 85 percent of Cambodian people live in rural areas and the country has no indigenous sources of fossil fuel. Over 84 percent of primary energy is created by fuel wood, according to reports. Rechargeable car batteries are normally used in rural areas for basic lighting and powering radios and small televisions.

Victor Jona, director-general of energy at the ministry noted that so far 15 provinces had been connected to the power grid, with three more major lines coming online in the next two years. He spoke of his desire that GE will be able to further assist in the ministry’s efforts.

In addition to electricity imports from Thailand, Vietnam and Laos, Mr. Jona said that Cambodia has six hydroelectric plants in operation, and one coal-powered plant. He stressed that energy prices for consumers had greatly fallen in recent years, with rural consumers paying about 600 riel ($0.15) per kilowatt/hour, down from $0.50 a few years ago.

Source: http://www.khmertimeskh.com/news/32285/ge-to-help-electrify-cambodia/

Gov’t Meets With Landlords to Discuss New Electricity Scheme

BY SEK ODOM | JANUARY 20, 2015

Less than a week after Prime Minister Hun Sen announced plans to reduce the price that migrant workers in Phnom Penh pay for electricity, the municipality hosted 12 public forums Monday to discuss a new payment scheme to be overseen by state operator Electricite du Cambodge (EdC).

In an effort to prevent landlords from profiting off the resale of electricity to their tenants, the government plans to outfit tens of thousands of rented rooms in the city with its own electricity meters, with renters paying between 610 and 820 riel ($0.15 to $0.20) per kWh directly to the EdC.

Landlords currently install their own meters and are allowed to set their own rates—often well above what they are charged by the electricity firm—for the electricity being used in their buildings.

At a public meeting with more than 200 building owners in Sen Sok district, Im Sophan, the head of EdC in the district, said the new meters will be installed throughout the city in the coming months.

“We are waiting for the meters to arrive from Thailand. There are 30,000 to 40,000 meters that will arrive in about two months,” he said.

A number of landlords at the meeting said the plan was flawed, as neither building owners nor tenants could afford to foot the bill for the new equipment.

Than Phearom, 36, a landlord in Phnom Penh Thmei commune, said workers would not be able to pay the security deposit of about $7.50 that the EdC would require from tenants.

“How will the worker deposit 30,000 riel to the EdC when they can barely buy rice for only 1,000 riel a day?” Mr. Phearom asked.

At another meeting in Russei Keo district between EdC representatives and more than 400 property owners, landlords also aired their objections.

“The EdC should not change anything,” said Sok Ny, an apartment building owner. “I will only take a little bit, not the same as in the past.”

....read more: https://www.cambodiadaily.com/news/govt-meets-with-landlords-to-discuss-new-electricity-scheme-76419/

Source: Cambodia Daily!

Unions wary of energy plan

Fri, 30 January 2015 Sarah Taguiam and Pech Sotheary

An electricity notice sits on the wall next to power metres at a garment worker’s residence yesterday in Phnom Penh’s Meanchey district. Pha Lina

Some labour unions are suggesting reforms to state energy provider Electricite du Cambodge’s (EdC) plan to grant energy discounts to garment workers in Phnom Penh, saying yesterday that the current arrangement is “too complex to implement”.

More than two weeks ago, EdC announced that it will lower electricity costs to alleviate the financial burden on impoverished workers after they complained about homeowners charging staggering prices ranging from 1,000 to 2,500 riel ($0.25 to $0.62) per kilowatt.

According to the new plan, workers are entitled to pay a lower fixed price of 610 riel ($0.15) per kilowatt for electricity consumed under 50 kilowatts a month. Electricity beyond that, however, will be subjected to public prices.

To enforce the $2-million plan, EdC was supposed to have installed new connections yesterday in rental spaces in three districts heavily populated by garment workers, said director-general Keo Rattanak in a recorded video clip last week.

The districts are Russei Keo, Meanchey and Dangkor.

EdC will bypass homeowners and draw up independent contracts with workers, charging them directly to avoid any price manipulation.

But unions are dubious.

“We really appreciate that the government announced this policy, but it just doesn’t sound realistic enough to implement,” said CLEC labour program head Moeun Tola.

C.CAWDU president Ath Thorn agreed, saying “some workers don’t have necessary documents to register for contracts and lack the time to pay the bill separately from their current utilities”.

Thorn also added that around 20 per cent of C.CAWDU’s members are unwilling to pay the 35,000 riels fee to install the new electric cables and counters.

To simplify the process, both labour leaders suggested that EdC let homeowners manage the payments and penalise landlords who charge beyond the fixed price.

Currently, most homeowners, according to Thorn, oppose the new initiative but have been told by EdC that they are obligated to comply with government policy.

“We will compromise with the homeowners to make this project successful,” said Long Dimanche, spokesman for Phnom Penh’s city hall, which is helping with implementation.

EdC officials will meet with homeowners from Monday to Sunday in the next few weeks to straighten out any outstanding issues, Rattanak said.

Kim Tay Factory garment worker Kit Meng said that the discounts are good, “but we’re worried that now the homeowners might overcharge water prices or increase rent to make up for their loss of money in electricity, so officials really need to negotiate with them”.

EdC could not be reached for comment.

ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY KHOUTH SOPHAK CHAKRYA

Source: Phnom Penh Post