Every figure below carries its named source and year. The Eco Index scores twelve pillars on the same scale everywhere; seven are measured from published data with fixed thresholds, five are assessed from the named sources.
Cambodia at a Glance.
The score, and the four numbers that set the tone. 12 equally-weighted pillars, every pillar sourced.
Compare with:
Renewable power
41%
of electricity
Food imported
7%
of merchandise imports · ~US$2,528m a year
The Eco Index across 12 pillars · scored 0 to 5 · World Bank, OWID, WHO/UNICEF JMP, FiBL, Protected Planet, IUCN, UNESCO (2023-24)
Water
Food & farming
Plant-based
Organic
Conservation
Wildlife
Materials
Pollution
Recycling
Energy
Culture
Heritage
Facts That Surprise People About Cambodia.
The numbers and firsts that change how you see Cambodia, the sobering and the remarkable. Every one is dated and linked to its source.
SoberingEnvironment
Forest cover fell from 62% to 38%
World Bank data, based on FAO assessments, show forest covered 62.3% of Cambodia's land in 1990 and 37.6% in 2024.
Source: World Bank, Forest area (% of land area), Cambodia · 2024
SoberingFood
One in five young children stunted
21.9% of Cambodian children under five were stunted in 2021, according to World Bank data. That is a large improvement on 58.6% in 1996, but still more than one child in five.
SoberingFood
Nearly one in ten young children wasted
World Bank data show 9.6% of Cambodian children under five were wasted, meaning too thin for their height, in 2021.
SoberingHealth
723,200 adults live with diabetes
The International Diabetes Federation estimates that 7.5% of Cambodian adults had diabetes in 2024, about 723,200 people.
RemarkableCulture
A court dance that survived the Khmer Rouge
Cambodia's Royal Ballet has been tied to the Khmer court for over a thousand years. The Khmer Rouge killed almost all its master dancers and musicians, yet troupes returned after 1979. UNESCO proclaimed the dance in 2003 and inscribed it in 2008.
RemarkableCulture
A martial art said to date to the 1st century
Kun Lbokator, a Cambodian martial art said to date back to the first century, joined UNESCO's Representative List in 2022. It pairs self defence with a philosophy of non violence and respect for nature.
RemarkableCulture
The krama scarf is world heritage
The krama, a checked cotton or silk cloth handwoven with plant and insect dyes, is used as a scarf, belt, blanket and baby hammock. UNESCO inscribed its cultural practices in 2024.
The History of Cambodia.
Cambodia holds a deep and living Khmer heritage, most famously the Royal Ballet of Cambodia, the classical Khmer dance tradition inscribed by UNESCO in 2008, and the masked drama Lkhon Khol Wat Svay Andet, inscribed in 2018 on the list of heritage in need of urgent safeguarding. Shadow puppetry (Sbek Thom) and singing to the chapei lute remain active performance traditions.
Where the name comes from
Kampuchea is the Khmer-language form of the name, according to the UK Permanent Committee on Geographical Names.
The land itself: low, flat plains through the centre, with mountains in the south west and north. Its high point is Phnum Aoral, 1,810 m. Source: UK Permanent Committee on Geographical Names toponymic factfile.
Where it starts
A cave lived in since the Ice Age
Laang Spean, the Cave of Bridges in Battambang, holds a record of human occupation running from the Late Upper Pleistocene into the Holocene. Further east, fish remains from the inland midden at Samrong Sen, dated to around 2200 to 1900 BC, include beads made from shark vertebrae, showing that coastal and inland communities were already trading in the late Neolithic and Bronze Age.
How it got here
Angkor, and after
From the 9th to the 15th century Angkor was the seat of the Khmer Empire's successive capitals, spread over some 400 square kilometres of temples, reservoirs, dykes and canals. Cambodia was a French protectorate from 1863 and independent in 1953. Between 1975 and 1979 at least 1.7 million people died under Khmer Rouge rule. Peace accords and United Nations supervised elections followed in 1991 and 1993.
The timeline
c. 71,000 years ago
Laang Spean.
Laang Spean cave in Battambang holds a human record of nearly 71,000 years, unmatched anywhere else in Cambodia. Source
c. 12,000 to 1,500 BC
Hoabinhian layers.
Hoabinhian hunter-gatherers use the same cave, followed by the first Neolithic farmers of the Battambang plain. Source
c. 2200 to 1900 BC
Samrong Sen and trade.
Fish remains from the inland midden at Samrong Sen, including beads made from shark vertebrae, show that coastal and inland communities traded with each other in the late Neolithic and Bronze Age. Source
From the 1st century AD
Funan.
Funan grows on the lower Mekong through maritime trade. Its main port, Oc Eo, now in Vietnam, has yielded Roman, Persian, Indian and Greek objects. Source
8th century to 802
Chenla.
Chenla splits into rival northern and southern halves, and around 802 Jayavarman II takes the throne, freeing the Khmer from Javanese overlordship. Source
9th to 15th century
Angkor.
Angkor holds the remains of the Khmer Empire's successive capitals, spread over some 400 square kilometres of temples, reservoirs, dykes and canals. Source
1863 to 1953
French protectorate.
Cambodia lives under French colonial rule for 90 years and wins its independence from France in 1953. Source
1975 to 1979
Khmer Rouge.
The death toll under Khmer Rouge rule from 1975 to 1979 is estimated at no fewer than 1.7 million. City dwellers were forced into farm work, and hundreds of thousands of educated people were tortured and executed. Source
1991 to 1993
Peace and elections.
Peace agreements are signed in Paris on 23 October 1991, and a United Nations transitional authority oversees the country and organises elections until 1993. Source
Nature and Biodiversity in Cambodia.
On paper Cambodia is a conservation heavyweight, with 39.8 per cent of its land inside protected areas (World Bank) including the Cardamom Mountains and Prey Lang. The reality is undercut by some of the world's highest deforestation rates, illegal logging and forest loss even within protected areas, and economic land concessions. Marine protection is minimal at 1.5 per cent.
Is wild Cambodia protected? 39.8% of the land is, already past the 30% target for 2030
How protected is nature in Cambodia?
Forest cover37.63%
Terrestrial protected area39.8%
Marine protected area1.5%
221 (mammals, birds, fish & plants) listed as threatened.
World Bank Open Data · Protected Planet (UNEP-WCMC / WDPA) · GBIF occurrence data · IUCN Red List, threatened species by country (Summary Statistics, Table 5) · World Bank, Marine protected areas (% of territorial waters), Cambodia · Convention on Biological Diversity, Global Biodiversity Framework Target 3
Found only here. Cardamom Mountains and northern-plains species, including the critically endangered giant ibis, plus the Mekong Irrawaddy dolphin, which is confined to a 180 km stretch of the Mekong from Kratie to the Lao border.
The watchlist
ThreatenedBlack-shanked Douc (Pygathrix nigripes) Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, and recorded in Cambodia in GBIF occurrence data (mammal).
ThreatenedBlack Ibis (Pseudibis davisoni) Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, and recorded in Cambodia in GBIF occurrence data (bird).
ThreatenedYellow Tortoise (Indotestudo elongata) Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, and recorded in Cambodia in GBIF occurrence data (turtle).
ThreatenedCrocodylus siamensis Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, and recorded in Cambodia in GBIF occurrence data (species).
ThreatenedMacaca fascicularis Endangered on the IUCN Red List, and recorded in Cambodia in GBIF occurrence data (mammal).
ThreatenedBengal Florican (Houbaropsis bengalensis) Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, and recorded in Cambodia in GBIF occurrence data (bird).
ThreatenedAsian White-backed Vulture (Gyps bengalensis) Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, and recorded in Cambodia in GBIF occurrence data (bird).
What is still here, and what is gone?
Tap a species for the honest status.
Closest to being lost, by name
Black-shanked Douc (Pygathrix nigripes)
Critically Endangered, the last IUCN category before Extinct in the Wild, and still recorded in Cambodia. GBIF holds 8 verified occurrence records.
Black Ibis (Pseudibis davisoni)
Critically Endangered, the last IUCN category before Extinct in the Wild, and still recorded in Cambodia. GBIF holds 135 verified occurrence records.
Yellow Tortoise (Indotestudo elongata)
Critically Endangered, the last IUCN category before Extinct in the Wild, and still recorded in Cambodia. GBIF holds 5 verified occurrence records.
Crocodylus siamensis
Critically Endangered, the last IUCN category before Extinct in the Wild, and still recorded in Cambodia. GBIF holds 1 verified occurrence records.
Species named here are drawn from GBIF occurrence records for Cambodia filtered to the IUCN Red List threatened categories. Species are listed where GBIF holds occurrence records for them in this country. Record counts are not published here because the figure cannot be reproduced from a public GBIF query.
Who is putting it back
National park in Kampot, mapped and named in the open record for Cambodia. OpenStreetMap.
National park in Ratanakiri, mapped and named in the open record for Cambodia. OpenStreetMap.
National park in Kampong Speu, mapped and named in the open record for Cambodia. OpenStreetMap.
National park in Siem Reap, mapped and named in the open record for Cambodia. OpenStreetMap.
National park in Kampong Saom, mapped and named in the open record for Cambodia. OpenStreetMap.
National park in Kep, mapped and named in the open record for Cambodia. OpenStreetMap.
Water and Ocean in Cambodia.
Cambodia is shaped by water, from the Mekong River to the Tonle Sap, South-East Asia's largest freshwater lake, which reverses its flow each monsoon, so surface water is abundant. Delivery, however, is poor: only about 29 per cent of the population uses safely managed drinking water (World Bank, 2022), rural access lags and some groundwater carries arsenic. Tap water is not safe to drink untreated.
Does Cambodia have enough fresh water? Yes, with headroom
30% of people here have safely managed drinking water at home (2024, WHO/UNICEF JMP). Coverage is well short of universal, so a visitor should not assume the tap is safe.
Cleanest water: The Cardamom rivers and the Koh Rong archipelago.
How much fresh water does Cambodia have, per person?
7,011 m³
Cambodia
1,000 m³
the UN “water scarce” line
Cambodia withdraws about 2,184 million cubic metres of fresh water a year (2022). That is 1.0% of the fresh water actually available to it, which FAO counts as no water stress. Of what is taken, farming takes 94%, homes and towns 4%, industry 2%. Source: FAO AQUASTAT.
What are the rules on Cambodia beaches?
✕Tap water: Not drinkable.
✓Plastic rules: Phnom Penh introduced a charge on plastic bags at large stores in 2018, though enforcement is limited and litter remains heavy..
✕Solo travel: rated take care on the record for this destination.
✕Marine protection: 1.44% of the sea is protected. The 30x30 pledge for 2030 is not met yet.
Named on the open map: Otres Beach, Ochheuteal Beach, Sokha Beach and Independence Beach in Sihanoukville, Kep Beach in Kep, and Lazy Beach on the Koh Rong islands. Each one is mapped as a beach in the public record for Cambodia, so you can look it up before you go. OpenStreetMap.
Where does the sewage go?
51.6%
of people have safely managed sanitation
51.6% of people here use a safely managed sanitation service, meaning waste is contained, emptied and treated rather than reaching the ground or the sea untreated (2024, World Bank / WHO-UNICEF JMP, SDG 6.2.1). The rest is what the rivers and the coast receive.
How is the sea around Cambodia doing?
One cross-section, every answer measured.
Surface
What the coast carries
Dry Nov–Apr, monsoon May–Oct; the temples are best early morning.
Nearshore
Protected water
1.5% of territorial waters are protected, against the 30% pledged for 2030 under the Global Biodiversity Framework.
Cleanest
Where the water is cleanest
The Cardamom rivers and the Koh Rong archipelago..
The record
Measured
Cambodia is shaped by water, from the Mekong River to the Tonle Sap, South-East Asia's largest freshwater lake, which reverses its flow each monsoon, so surface water is abundant. Delivery, however, is poor: only about 29 per cent of the population uses safely managed drinking water (World Bank, 2022), rural access lags and some groundwater carries arsenic.
Cambodia scored 66 out of 100 on the Ocean Health Index in its 2025 assessment, below the global average of 72, and ranked 163rd of 220 coastal regions. The index team says it is no longer updating scores, so the 2025 figures may be the last.
Sea protected
1.5%
Against the 30% pledged for 2030 under the Global Biodiversity Framework.
Is the tap water safe in Cambodia?
30% of people have safely managed drinking water at home (2024, WHO/UNICEF JMP). Renewable fresh water works out at about 7,011 cubic metres per person a year (World Bank).
How hard is the water supply being pushed?
Of every 10 buckets nature refills, 0 are already taken. Withdrawals run at 1% of what Cambodia renews internally each year (2022, World Bank / FAO AQUASTAT). That is inside the 25% mark generally treated as water stress, so the supply has headroom.
When is the best time to visit Cambodia? Tap your month.
Tap your month.
How much fresh water does Cambodia actually have?
Nature renews about 7,011 cubic metres of fresh water per person per year here. That ranks Cambodia 146 of 208 countries measured, putting it in the wetter half of the world. The UN treats anything under 1,000 cubic metres as water scarce, and this is above that line. World Bank / FAO AQUASTAT.
Food and Drink in Cambodia.
Cambodia is strongly agricultural. Farming, forestry and fishing make up about 17 per cent of GDP and employ about a third of all workers, and food is only about 8.5 per cent of merchandise imports (World Bank, 2023).
Where does the food in Cambodia come from?
7.5% imported
about US$2,528m a year
On the plate: Rice, prahok (fermented paste), Khmer curries built on kroeung spice paste, tropical fruit and Kampot pepper.
1 of 10
bites are imported
The island buys in more food energy than it eats. About US$2,528m a year leaves the country to pay for it. The green slice is roughly what still grows here.
Food is 7.5% of everything Cambodia imports (2024, World Bank). Farming itself is 16.1% of the economy and 34.9% of the land is agricultural, of which 23.3% is arable. The green slice is roughly what still grows here.
What is killing people in Cambodia? The imported diet.
Cause of death, and the diet behind it.
Non-communicable diseases, all combined63.6%
Diabetes7.5%
Adults living with overweight or obesity. 25.1%.
Can Cambodia feed itself?
23.3%
Arable land
34.9%
Agricultural land
3,463,284
Farmers
10,181,071
Arable acres
16.1%
Agriculture, share of GDP
Harvest: Wet-season rice harvested from November to December, with dry-season rice around March and April.
Feeding itself
Cambodia is strongly agricultural, self-sufficient in rice and a significant milled-rice exporter, with food only about 8.5 per cent of merchandise imports (World Bank). The Tonle Sap sustains one of the world's most productive inland fisheries, and tropical fruit and vegetables are widely grown.
Certification
Certified organic land is about 0.6 per cent of farmland, roughly 36,000 hectares (FiBL, 2020), a small but growing sector. Organic Kampot pepper and emerging organic rice are the standout products.
Water for crops
Cambodia is shaped by water, from the Mekong River to the Tonle Sap, South-East Asia's largest freshwater lake, which reverses its flow each monsoon, so surface water is abundant. Delivery, however, is poor: only about 29 per cent of the population uses safely managed drinking water (World Bank, 2022), rural access lags and some groundwater carries arsenic.
Why the organic number looks like that. Certification covers only part of what is grown cleanly, so a small certified share is a gap in the paperwork rather than proof that nothing is. What the official land record does show: 34.9% of the country is agricultural land and 23.3% is arable (2023, World Bank). Certification is paid for per farm per year by a foreign body, which prices out smallholders, so the organic number reads worse than the practice.
What actually grows here
CassavaRiceMaizeSugarcaneVegetablesOil palm fruitRubberBananasJute
The food that already fits
The plant-based kitchen here is not an import. By tonnage, the largest crops grown in Cambodia are cassava, rice, maize and sugarcane (FAO, FAOSTAT crop production, 2024). That is what the land itself puts on a plate.
Buy direct where residents buy: An Ses Marketplace, Banteay Chey Market, Dak Dam Market, Huge Market, Kambol Rainbow Night Market, Kampong Thmar Market. Each is a mapped, named marketplace, so the money stays with the seller rather than the importer. OpenStreetMap.
Not yet checked by us. Plant based kitchens listed publicly: Bong Bonlai, vegan restaurant in Phnom Penh (Street 830): Mediterranean and Asian fusion dishes in a courtyard; Sacred Lotus, vegan café and hostel in Phnom Penh (Street 440): Western and Khmer plant based dishes; Sundays, vegan café and boutique hotel in Phnom Penh (Street 464): vegan waffles and café dishes; Hey Bong, vegan restaurant in Siem Reap: burgers, salad bowls, tofu cumin noodles and juices. Tell us how they are.
Is this grown in Cambodia?
Tap a food for the honest answer.
RiceTropical fruitKampot pepper
World Bank Open Data · FAO, FAOSTAT crop production · World Health Organization · FAO AQUASTAT · Vegan Food Quest, Vegan guide to Phnom Penh (updated September 2026) · Vegan Food Quest, Vegan guide to Siem Reap (updated September 2026) · World Bank, Food imports (% of merchandise imports), Cambodia · World Bank, Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (% of GDP), Cambodia · World Bank, Employment in agriculture, Cambodia
Climate and Energy in Cambodia.
Cambodia's electricity mix is split between coal and hydropower, with coal supplying about 59 per cent of generation in 2023 and renewables, chiefly hydro, around 41 per cent. Per-capita emissions are very low at roughly 1 tonne of CO2 a year, reflecting low energy use, but they are rising quickly as coal-fired capacity expands. The country has pledged carbon neutrality by 2050 and is adding solar, yet the near-term trend leans on coal. This tension between a very low emitter and a coal-heavy, worsening grid places it in the middle band.
What powers Cambodia?
Renewable 40.9%Fossil 59.1%
Electricité du Cambodge (EDC) is the state owned national power utility, owned jointly by the Ministry of Mines and Energy and the Ministry of Economy and Finance, and responsible for transmission, distribution in its licensed areas and power imports. Most generation is private: EDC buys power from independent producers, mainly Cambodian and foreign joint ventures, and many rural areas are supplied by licensed rural electricity enterprises that buy power from EDC. The Electricity Authority of Cambodia, an autonomous agency set up under the 2001 Electricity Law, regulates the sector and licenses every supplier. By the end of 2024 the grid reached 14,048 of the country's 14,153 villages, or 99.15 per cent. In September 2025 the Asian Development Bank approved a US$52.72 million loan to build 55 km of 230 kV line between Pursat and Kampong Chhnang and upgrade nine substations, so the grid can carry more solar and wind power.
Climate pollution per person
The safe amount, what the planet can absorb
2 tonnes
One person here
1.1 tonnes
The world average, for comparison
4.7 tonnes
The worst it ever got
1.1 tonnes
The grid
Cambodia's electricity mix is split between coal and hydropower, with coal supplying about 59 per cent of generation in 2023 and renewables, chiefly hydro, around 41 per cent. Per-capita emissions are very low at roughly 1.1 tonne of CO2 a year, reflecting low energy use, but they are rising quickly as coal-fired capacity expands.
Pollution
Phnom Penh introduced a charge on plastic bags at large stores in 2018, but enforcement is limited and plastic litter is heavy in cities and waterways. Urban air is moderate, with a national PM2.5 average around 18 micrograms per cubic metre (IQAir, 2024), well above the WHO guideline, worsened by crop and forest burning.
Water stress
Cambodia is shaped by water, from the Mekong River to the Tonle Sap, South-East Asia's largest freshwater lake, which reverses its flow each monsoon, so surface water is abundant. Delivery, however, is poor: only about 29 per cent of the population uses safely managed drinking water (World Bank, 2022), rural access lags and some groundwater carries arsenic.
What pollutes most here
1The grid The share of electricity still generated from fossil fuel.64.3%
2Industry Illegal logging, riverbed sand mining and garment-factory effluent..named
3Air Modelled annual mean against a WHO guideline of 5 µg/m³.18.1
4On the record Phnom Penh introduced a charge on plastic bags at large stores in 2018, but enforcement is limited and plastic litter is heavy in cities and waterways.
What has Cambodia promised on climate?
Net zero, whole economy2050
Electricity renewable today56.4% (2021)
Land protected, against a 30% target39.8% by 2025
Sea protected, against a 30% target1.5% by 2025
The net-zero target year on file with Climate Watch is 2050, status: in policy document. Measured against it, 56.4% of electricity is already renewable (2021, World Bank), so 43.6% of the grid is still to be converted. The pledge on file is measured here against what has actually been delivered, not taken on its own (UNFCCC NDC Registry, CBD Kunming-Montreal Target 3).
The biggest line item
One return flight against a whole year of living.
A resident's entire year1.1 t CO2e
Safe-climate budget, per year2 t CO2e
New York return, economy2.56 t CO2e
Los Angeles return, economy2.38 t CO2e
London return, economy1.81 t CO2e
Paris return, economy1.79 t CO2e
Frankfurt return, economy1.71 t CO2e
How much CO2 does flying to Cambodia emit?
Tap where you would fly from. One return flight, economy.
Firsts on climate finance. Cambodia's sustainable bond market is young and corporate rather than sovereign. On 24 November 2023 the telecoms company CamGSM (Cellcard) issued a ten year sustainability bond of about US$20 million, and the Phnom Penh Post reported it as the first company on the Cambodia Securities Exchange to list and issue sustainability bonds. On 11 April 2025 SchneiTec Dynamic listed a 15 year green bond of KHR 196.64 billion, about US$49.16 million, to finance a 60 MW solar plant in Kampong Chhnang province, with two of its three tranches guaranteed by CGIF; it followed a green bond listing by Royal Group Phnom Penh SEZ in 2024. In September 2025 the Asian Development Bank approved a US$52.72 million loan to extend the grid for renewable power.
Climate Watch (WRI) · UNFCCC NDC Registry · World Bank Open Data · UK DESNZ greenhouse gas conversion factors · Asian Development Bank, Cambodia Solar Power Project, sector overview (RRP CAM 50248) · The Star / Phnom Penh Post, National grid reaches 99.15% of Cambodian villages (8 February 2025) · Asian Development Bank, ADB $52 million project to power Cambodia's renewable energy path (18 September 2025) · Vietstock / Phnom Penh Post, CSX: Historic green bonds issued in first for Kingdom (1 December 2023) · B2B Asia News, SchneiTec Dynamic issues $50 million green bond for solar plant in Kampong Chhnang province (12 April 2025)
AI and Data Centres in Cambodia.
Every prompt runs on a machine in a building on somebody’s grid. What that costs the planet depends less on the prompt than on what is burning to power it. Here is what would power one in Cambodia.
Data centres
9
Registered colocation and interconnection facilities, PeeringDB, 2026
Grid renewable
40.9 %
What a machine here runs on.
What powers a data centre in Cambodia?
Most of the power behind a machine here is still burned.
Renewable 40.9%Fossil 59.1%
Cooling water. Every one of those halls runs on the national grid, which is 56.4% renewable today (World Bank). A data centre is only as clean as the electricity behind it, so the same figure that decides this country's climate score also decides the footprint of the AI running inside it. Cooling water use is not separately published by facility, and no operator here reports it.
The rules. Cambodia has 9 colocation and interconnection facilities on the public PeeringDB register, concentrated in Phnom Penh (9), alongside 4 internet exchanges (HTN-IX, TC-IX, CNX, MekongIX). Named sites include Cambodian SingMeng Telemedia Co., Ltd., MekongNet, Telecom Cambodia Building, Sabay Digital, Tonle Basak (KPH).
Where the cables land. 1 landing points · Sihanoukville
Economy and Tourism in Cambodia.
73% residents to 27% visitors across a year. 6,611,000 international arrivals in 2019 against 17,847,982 people who live here (2025, World Bank / UN Tourism).
Where a visitor dollar goes in Cambodia
1,306k
Visitors a year
0.1
Visitors per resident
How deep in debt is Cambodia?· for every $100 Cambodia earns in a year, it owes…
Pay to the order of: the creditorsmemo · the 2003 peak
$ 40The worst year on the IMF record. Cambodia owed $40 for every $100 it earned.
IMF World Economic Outlook, 2003signed, the creditors
Pay to the order of: the creditorsmemo · today
$ 27What is owed now, for every $100 of national income (2026).
IMF World Economic Outlook, 2026signed, the creditors
Pay to the order of: the creditorsmemo · projected 2031
$ 28The IMF's own forecast has this rising to $28 by 2031.
IMF World Economic Outlook projection, 2031signed, the forecast
For every $100 Cambodia earns in a year, it owes $27 (2026, IMF World Economic Outlook). The interest on that is paid before schools, clinics or coastline get their turn.
Where does a tourist dollar actually go in Cambodia?
Play one tourist dollar around the board. Every square is a measured fact from this page.
START!
1
GO: a visitor lands
$100 goes on the table. 6,611,000 international arrivals in 2019 against 17,847,982 residents, one visitor a year for every 3 residents (World Bank / UN Tourism).
$100 in play2
The bed
Who owns the largest places to stay in Cambodia is not published in the records we can check, so this square is left open rather than guessed. Where a listing names its owner, it is shown in the ownership table below.
not published3
The plate
Food is only 7.5% of everything Cambodia imports (2024, World Bank), so most of a meal is bought from producers inside the country. Eating what the land here actually grows, cassava, rice, maize, sugarcane, vegetables, oil palm fruit, rubber, bananas, jute, keeps that money with the grower.
mostly home-grown4
The power
56.4% of the electricity is renewable (2021, World Bank), so the energy on the bill is mostly generated inside the country rather than shipped in.
made at home5
What actually stays
Of the two parts of a visitor's bill that can be measured here, the plate and the power stay inside Cambodia. This is not an economy where a visitor's money drains away, and the board is shorter for it.
most of it6
Pay the bank first
Cambodia owes $27 for every $100 it earns (IMF World Economic Outlook, 2026 projection). The interest is paid before anything else on this board.
$27 per $1007
No plan B
25.3% of everything Cambodia sells abroad is knitted clothing (2023, UN Comtrade). One market moving takes the whole board with it.
25.3% one export8
Community chest
Tourism earns 5.4% of everything Cambodia makes from exports (2020, World Bank / UN Tourism). That is how much of the economy depends on the game continuing.
5.4% of exports9
The flight
Getting here is usually the biggest single line on the bill. From New York a return economy seat is 2.56 t CO2, on the UK Government's published conversion factors. It is the one part of the trip this board cannot reduce.
2.56 t CO210
Back to GO
The economy turns over about US$52 billion a year (IMF World Economic Outlook, 2026 projection). Every lap of this board is a choice about how much of it stays.
US$52bnGDPUS$51.3bn
Agriculture, share of GDP16.1%
Visitors a year1,306,000
Visitors per resident0.1
Residents~17,847,982
Agriculture
Farming is 16.1% of the economy. Cambodia is strongly agricultural, self-sufficient in rice and a significant milled-rice exporter, with food only about 8.5 per cent of merchandise imports (World Bank).
Natural materials
Cambodia keeps a living textile tradition in its golden silk and hol ikat weaving and in the ubiquitous cotton krama scarf, a national symbol worn everywhere. Rattan, water hyacinth and lotus-stem fibre feed a range of craft.
Energy
Cambodia's electricity mix is split between coal and hydropower, with coal supplying about 59 per cent of generation in 2023 and renewables, chiefly hydro, around 41 per cent. Per-capita emissions are very low at roughly 1.1 tonne of CO2 a year, reflecting low energy use, but they are rising quickly as coal-fired capacity expands.
Who owns the biggest hotels in Cambodia?
By rooms · company records and press.
Elephant Valley Project · ~5 roomsIndependentnot published
Visitors, over time
20154,775k
20165,012k
20175,602k
20186,201k
20196,611k
20201,306k
International tourism receipts run at about US$1.12 billion in 2020 (World Bank / UN Tourism). That is 5.4% of everything the country earns from exports.
How much of your money actually stays here?
Tap the holiday you are planning.
Visiting Cambodia, whoever you are.
Resort guest, villa renter, family, nomad or backpacker. The honest playbook for each, from the same sourced numbers.
Already booked a resort? · the rescue list
Five swaps that move your money back on-island
1. Eat where the country eats Choose kitchens cooking what the land here grows, cassava, rice, maize, sugarcane, vegetables, oil palm fruit, rubber, bananas and jute, over an imported menu.
2. Book with a local operator Never the lobby desk. The margin on a tour is the part that stays.
3. Stay somewhere locally owned Ownership decides where the room rate books. Eco stays
4. Use the transport residents use Buses and shared minivans between towns, tuk-tuks in the cities, and boats on the Mekong and Tonle Sap.
5. Buy the craft, not the souvenir Natural-materials work made here pays the maker directly; imported gifts pay a shipping line.
Swipe
First time here
Cambodia is rice self-sufficient and rich in living Khmer culture around the Mekong and Tonle Sap, but weak enforcement of its large protected-area network, unsafe tap water and rising coal power weigh on its eco credentials.
Best time: November to February, the cool dry season.
Getting around
Buses and shared minivans between towns, tuk-tuks in the cities, and boats on the Mekong and Tonle Sap.
Transport is where the fare either stays or leaves.
Eating here
The everyday plate that actually grows here is cassava, rice, maize, sugarcane, vegetables, oil palm fruit, rubber, bananas and jute. Ordering those keeps the money with the grower and cuts the imported share of the meal.
Eating what the country grows is the cheapest way to cut the import bill.
Good to know
USD is used alongside riel; cash is king. Khmer etiquette is gentle and formal.
Rate my hotel. Tap yours for the honest verdict.
Ownership from company records and press.
Who owns the place to stay
Elephant Valley ProjectIndependent · 5 rooms
The one property listed here does not publish who ultimately owns it, so no claim is made either way. Ownership is what decides how much of a room rate stays in the country, which is why we show it when a listing states it.
Society and Governance in Cambodia.
How well is Cambodia actually run?
Governance, measured · World Bank WGI
Four measured answers, none of them opinion. Averaged across corruption control, delivery and accountability, Cambodia scores 32 out of 100 (2024, World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators). That matters here because every pledge on this page is only as good as the machinery meant to deliver it.
What is daily life in Cambodia really like? Measured
Getting around, breathing, throwing away, learning. The honest checklist.
TransportAirWaterWastePower
✓How you get around Buses and shared minivans between towns, tuk-tuks in the cities, and boats on the Mekong and Tonle Sap.
71.9%
literacy. Public spending on education runs at 2.2% of GDP and 11.6% of all government spending, and secondary enrolment stands at 58.8% gross (UNESCO Institute for Statistics, 2023 to 2025).
Made in Cambodia.
Cambodia keeps a living textile tradition in its golden silk and hol ikat weaving and in the ubiquitous cotton krama scarf, a national symbol worn everywhere. Rattan, water hyacinth and lotus-stem fibre feed a range of craft. Every step of processing done at home is value that stops leaving the country.
What Cambodia actually sells the world
The single biggest thing Cambodia sells the world is knitted clothing, 25.3% of all exports in 2023 (about US$5.48 billion, UN Comtrade). The next four are electrical machinery and electronics at 14.5%, woven clothing at 11.0%, leather articles at 7.9%, footwear at 6.3%.
Made now · natural materials
Hol ikat weaving
Worked in Cambodia from local material, and still a working craft rather than a museum piece.
Made now · natural materials
National symbol worn everywhere. Rattan
Worked in Cambodia from local material, and still a working craft rather than a museum piece.
Made now · natural materials
Water hyacinth
Worked in Cambodia from local material, and still a working craft rather than a museum piece.
Could make · grown here already
Rice
Grown in Cambodia and mostly sold raw. Processing it here would keep the margin here.
Could make · grown here already
Freshwater fish
Grown in Cambodia and mostly sold raw. Processing it here would keep the margin here.
Could make · grown here already
Prahok (fermented fish paste)
Grown in Cambodia and mostly sold raw. Processing it here would keep the margin here.
The maths for an entrepreneur. Cambodia produces about US$51 billion a year, which is roughly US$2,872 per person (2025, World Bank). Farming is 16.1% of that, while food is 7.5% of everything the country imports. With 23.3% of the land arable, the raw material for that is already in the ground.
See the verified makersCulture in Cambodia.
Over a thousand yearsRoyal ceremonies and Khmer holidays
Royal Ballet of Cambodia, Khmer classical dance
Also called the Royal Ballet of Cambodia, this court dance is known for its graceful hand gestures and costumes, with an orchestra and a female chorus telling the story.
Rituals linked to the rice-farming cycle
Lkhon Khol Wat Svay Andet masked drama
Men wearing masks perform this dance drama to a traditional orchestra at Wat Svay Andet, a monastery about 10 km east of Phnom Penh on the Mekong. UNESCO lists it as in need of urgent safeguarding.
Pinpeat
The pinpeat ensemble accompanies court dance, masked plays, shadow plays and religious ceremonies, and temples in town and country often have one. Instruments carved on the temples of Angkor, such as the angular harp, gong circle and barrel drum, are believed to have developed into it.
Mahori music
At the royal court the mahori ensemble provides entertainment, while the pinpeat ensemble is kept for dance, theatre and religious ceremonies.
Before the Angkorian periodAt night outdoors, on a few set occasions a year such as Khmer New Year and the King's birthdaySbek Thom shadow puppetryTwo-metre-high puppets, each cut from a single piece of leather, are moved before a screen with an orchestra and two narrators. The Khmer Rouge almost wiped out the art, and a few surviving artists have revived it since 1979.
Cultural festivals and traditional ritualsChapei luteChapei Dang Veng is singing to the chapei lute, mixing wit, storytelling, satire, folk tales and Buddhist stories. Few performers and even fewer masters remain, and UNESCO lists it as in need of urgent safeguarding.
Does Cambodia protect its heritage by law?
Partly, and the gaps say as much as the protections.
What is kept alive. Cambodia holds a deep and living Khmer heritage, most famously the Royal Ballet of Cambodia, the classical Khmer dance tradition that includes the Apsara dance, inscribed by UNESCO in 2008, and the masked drama Lkhon Khol Wat Svay Andet, inscribed in 2018 on the list of heritage in need of urgent safeguarding. Pinpeat and mahori ensembles, shadow puppetry (Sbek Thom) and the bamboo-lute chapei remain active performance traditions. Everyday spiritual life blends Theravada Buddhism with older animist practice, including the veneration of Neak Ta guardian spirits and ancestors.
Who it belongs to. Khmer culture is deeply alive, anchored by Angkor and by everyday Theravada Buddhist practice, and indigenous highland peoples such as the Bunong, Kreung and Tampuan maintain distinct traditions. Established community-based ecotourism at Chi Phat, Banteay Chhmar and Prek Toal channels income directly to villages and conservation. Land-grabbing and uneven distribution of Angkor revenue are real problems, but genuine community tourism is well developed.
Only here. The Tonle Sap, whose seasonal flow reversal swells the lake several times over and drives one of the world's most productive inland fisheries..
UNESCO · UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage, Royal ballet of Cambodia · UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage, Lkhon Khol Wat Svay Andet · UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage, Sbek Thom, Khmer shadow theatre · UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage, Chapei Dang Veng · University of Maryland, Baltimore County, Ethnomusicology Online, Cambodian music history
The Future of Cambodia.
Three futures for Cambodia, every one run forward from measured data.
Where the making actually happens
Named cultural and craft sites on the open map: Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum (Khan Boeng Keng Kang), National Museum of Cambodia (Khan Daun Penh), Angkor National Museum (Siem Reap), Landmine Museum (Siem Reap), War Museum Cambodia (Siem Reap). OpenStreetMap. Named craft workshops on the open map: Angkor Recycled, Artisans d'Angkor, Backstreet Academy, Fair Trade Village, The Bunong Place.
Every measured trend on one line
Run forward at the pace already recorded.
World Bank open data, recorded series
How much forest is left?
Forest cover moved from 61.7% to 37.6% across 29 recorded years.
How much climate pollution per person?
CO2 per person moved from 0.15 t to 1.1 t across 29 recorded years.
How many people visit?
Tourist arrivals moved from 220k to 1,306k across 25 recorded years.
How much land is protected?
Protected land moved from 26.3% to 39.8% across 12 recorded years.
How many people still farm?
Farm workforce moved from 77.5% to 33.4% across 30 recorded years.
How much sea is protected?
Protected sea moved from 0.2% to 1.5% across 12 recorded years.
How much land is farmed?
Agricultural land moved from 25.9% to 34.7% across 29 recorded years.
How fast is it urbanising?
Urban population moved from 17.5% to 41.1% across 30 recorded years.
Is the air getting cleaner?
Air pollution moved from 25.7 µg/m³ to 19.4 µg/m³ across 28 recorded years.
Is water getting scarcer?
Fresh water per person moved from 12,038 m³ to 7,011 m³ across 27 recorded years.
Is diet-related disease rising?
Adult overweight moved from 6.95% to 25.1% across 27 recorded years.
Who has power?
Electricity access moved from 18.7% to 99.2% across 26 recorded years.
Is income rising?
GDP per person moved from 343 to 2,872 across 30 recorded years.
How fast is it growing?
Population moved from 10,018k to 17,848k across 30 recorded years.
What share of all energy is renewable?
Renewable energy use moved from 82.5% to 52.4% across 26 recorded years.
How much energy does one person use?
Energy per person moved from 282 kg to 593 kg across 29 recorded years.
How much land and sea is protected together?
Protected area, total moved from 20.9% to 31.8% across 12 recorded years.
How long do people live?
Life expectancy moved from 56.6 yrs to 70.8 yrs across 29 recorded years.
How much does a hectare of cereal produce?
Cereal yield moved from 1,779 kg/ha to 3,778 kg/ha across 29 recorded years.
How much fertiliser goes on the land?
Fertiliser use moved from 2.65 kg/ha to 78.4 kg/ha across 29 recorded years.
How many people still live rurally?
Rural population moved from 82.5% to 58.9% across 30 recorded years.
How much value per cubic metre of water?
Water productivity moved from 5.91 $/m3 to 15.8 $/m3 across 16 recorded years.
How much goes on health?
Health spending moved from 6.48% to 4.62% across 23 recorded years.
How much forest is there in total?
Forest area moved from 108,929 km2 to 63,332 km2 across 30 recorded years.
How much electricity per person?
Electric power use moved from 14.4 kWh to 1,086 kWh across 29 recorded years.
How have agriculture emissions moved?
Agriculture emissions moved from 15.75 to 25.58 MtCO2e across 33 recorded years.
Climate Watch (WRI), historical emissions
Worst caseCurrent pathBest case
Worst case
Every measured decline continues at the pace already recorded. The weakest pillar, organic farming at 1/5, is the one that gives way first.
Computed from: recorded series extended with no policy change
What the best case actually asks for
Lift organic farming
It scores 1 out of 5 today, among the weakest parts of Cambodia's record. Certified organic land is about 0.6 per cent of farmland, roughly 36,000 hectares (FiBL, 2020), a small but growing sector. Organic Kampot pepper and emerging organic rice are the standout products. The certified share stays low.
measured each year
Costs: spending and enforcement, not new technology
Lift recycling
It scores 1 out of 5 today, among the weakest parts of Cambodia's record. Cambodia has little formal municipal recycling, and recovery depends largely on informal waste pickers and small buy-back dealers collecting cans, plastic and metal. There is no comprehensive kerbside system. Rates are low.
measured each year
Costs: spending and enforcement, not new technology
Lift pollution
It scores 2 out of 5 today, among the weakest parts of Cambodia's record. Phnom Penh introduced a charge on plastic bags at large stores in 2018, but enforcement is limited and plastic litter is heavy in cities and waterways.
measured each year
Costs: spending and enforcement, not new technology
Government and Goals in Cambodia.
Who is in charge of Cambodia now · Office-holders from the UN Protocol and Liaison Service public list of Heads of State and Heads of Government, 20 October 2026. Legislature and election dates from IFES ElectionGuide. Constitution dates from the Constitute Project. Governance scores from the World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators 2024.
Hun Manet
Prime Minister
Hun Manet is the head of government of Cambodia, in office since 22 August 2023. Every climate, protection and energy pledge on this page is delivered, or not, under this administration.
Public opinion, measured
Voice and accountability, the freedom to question government scores 27.5 out of 100 in 2025. On this World Bank scale, 100 is the strongest governance measured. Down from 27.9 in 2024. World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators, 2025 data (updated 25 September 2026)
Control of corruption scores 22.6 out of 100 in 2025. On this World Bank scale, 100 is the strongest governance measured. Down from 23.2 in 2024. World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators, 2025 data (updated 25 September 2026)
Political stability and absence of violence scores 71.5 out of 100 in 2025. On this World Bank scale, 100 is the strongest governance measured. Up from 67.4 in 2024. World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators, 2025 data (updated 25 September 2026)
Rule of law scores 41.3 out of 100 in 2025. On this World Bank scale, 100 is the strongest governance measured. Down from 41.8 in 2024. World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators, 2025 data (updated 25 September 2026)
Regulatory quality scores 45.4 out of 100 in 2025. On this World Bank scale, 100 is the strongest governance measured. Up from 45.3 in 2024. World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators, 2025 data (updated 25 September 2026)
Hun ManetPrime Minister
ParliamentLegislature, bicameral
Last election23 July 2023
Constitution1993, as revised to 2008
Government typeparliamentary constitutional monarchy
Cambodia national goals: climate commitments on record · as recorded by Climate Watch, World Resources Institute
Plain Answers About Cambodia.
The questions people actually type, answered in full sentences from the sourced data above.
Swipe
Is Cambodia sustainable?
Cambodia scores 62 out of 100 on the Throne Eco Index, across twelve equally weighted pillars. Cambodia is rice self-sufficient and rich in living Khmer culture around the Mekong and Tonle Sap, but weak enforcement of its large protected-area network, unsafe tap water and rising coal power weigh on its eco credentials.
Is the water in Cambodia safe and plentiful?
Cambodia is shaped by water, from the Mekong River to the Tonle Sap, South-East Asia's largest freshwater lake, which reverses its flow each monsoon, so surface water is abundant. Delivery, however, is poor: only about 29 per cent of the population uses safely managed drinking water (World Bank, 2022), rural access lags and some groundwater carries arsenic. Tap water is not safe to drink untreated.
Can Cambodia feed itself?
Cambodia is strongly agricultural, self-sufficient in rice and a significant milled-rice exporter, with food only about 8.5 per cent of merchandise imports (World Bank). The Tonle Sap sustains one of the world's most productive inland fisheries, and tropical fruit and vegetables are widely grown. Domestic food production is robust.
Is it easy to eat plant-based in Cambodia?
The rice-and-vegetable base and abundant tropical produce make plant food easy to find, and Buddhist temple cuisine offers a vegetarian thread. But fish and the fermented fish paste prahok are central to Khmer cooking, so genuinely plant-based meals take more effort to source. Availability is good, the culture less so.
How much of Cambodia is actually protected?
On paper Cambodia is a conservation heavyweight, with 39.8 per cent of its land inside protected areas (World Bank) including the Cardamom Mountains and Prey Lang. The reality is undercut by some of the world's highest deforestation rates, illegal logging and forest loss even within protected areas, and economic land concessions. Marine protection is minimal at 1.5 per cent.
What wildlife is left in Cambodia?
The Cardamom Mountains and northern plains hold globally important biodiversity, and a single reserve, Keo Seima, supports more than 75 IUCN-threatened species. Cambodia is a last refuge for the critically endangered giant ibis, its national bird, and Mekong Irrawaddy dolphins. Populations are heavily depleted by poaching and the wildlife trade, and tigers are now functionally extinct here.
Is Cambodia on clean energy?
Cambodia's electricity mix is split between coal and hydropower, with coal supplying about 59 per cent of generation in 2023 and renewables, chiefly hydro, around 41 per cent. Per-capita emissions are very low at roughly 1.1 tonne of CO2 a year, reflecting low energy use, but they are rising quickly as coal-fired capacity expands. The country has pledged carbon neutrality by 2050 and is adding solar, yet the near-term trend leans on coal.
How polluted is Cambodia?
Phnom Penh introduced a charge on plastic bags at large stores in 2018, but enforcement is limited and plastic litter is heavy in cities and waterways. Urban air is moderate, with a national PM2.5 average around 18 micrograms per cubic metre (IQAir, 2024), well above the WHO guideline, worsened by crop and forest burning. Policy is weak and thinly enforced.
Does recycling work in Cambodia?
Cambodia has little formal municipal recycling, and recovery depends largely on informal waste pickers and small buy-back dealers collecting cans, plastic and metal. There is no comprehensive kerbside system. Rates are low.
Is the farming in Cambodia organic?
Certified organic land is about 0.6 per cent of farmland, roughly 36,000 hectares (FiBL, 2020), a small but growing sector. Organic Kampot pepper and emerging organic rice are the standout products. The certified share stays low.
Are there natural materials and craft in Cambodia?
Cambodia keeps a living textile tradition in its golden silk and hol ikat weaving and in the ubiquitous cotton krama scarf, a national symbol worn everywhere. Rattan, water hyacinth and lotus-stem fibre feed a range of craft. The silk sector leans partly on imported raw thread, but the weaving culture itself is very much alive.
Is there living culture in Cambodia?
Khmer culture is deeply alive, anchored by Angkor and by everyday Theravada Buddhist practice, and indigenous highland peoples such as the Bunong, Kreung and Tampuan maintain distinct traditions. Established community-based ecotourism at Chi Phat, Banteay Chhmar and Prek Toal channels income directly to villages and conservation. Land-grabbing and uneven distribution of Angkor revenue are real problems, but genuine community tourism is well developed.
What heritage does Cambodia keep alive?
Cambodia holds a deep and living Khmer heritage, most famously the Royal Ballet of Cambodia, the classical Khmer dance tradition that includes the Apsara dance, inscribed by UNESCO in 2008, and the masked drama Lkhon Khol Wat Svay Andet, inscribed in 2018 on the list of heritage in need of urgent safeguarding. Pinpeat and mahori ensembles, shadow puppetry (Sbek Thom) and the bamboo-lute chapei remain active performance traditions. Everyday spiritual life blends Theravada Buddhism with older animist practice, including the veneration of Neak Ta guardian spirits and ancestors.
So is Cambodia actually green? The measured answer
What is working: land protected at 39.8%, renewable electricity at 56.4%.
What is not: sea protected at 1.5% against a 30% mark.
World Bank Open Data · Protected Planet (UNEP-WCMC / WDPA) · Climate Watch (WRI) · Yale Environmental Performance Index 2026 · World Bank, Population, total, Cambodia · CIA World Factbook, Cambodia (factbook.json mirror) · World Bank, Terrestrial protected areas, Cambodia · World Bank, Renewable electricity output, Cambodia · World Bank, CO2 emissions per capita excluding LULUCF, Cambodia · World Bank, Cause of death by non-communicable diseases, Cambodia · UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage, Royal ballet of Cambodia
How Cambodia Ranks, region and world.
Where Cambodia sits on the Eco Index, against its Asia neighbours and the 77 destinations scored worldwide.
How does Cambodia compare in Asia?
1India67
2Sri Lanka65
3Laos63
5Thailand62
Scored Asia destinations, Eco Index.
The global top 10 of the 77 destinations scored
1Switzerland78
2France78
3Finland77
4Slovenia77
5Australia77
6Portugal75
7Germany75
8New Zealand75
9Italy73
10Spain73
Cambodia sits 46 of 77 at 62/100. Every name links to its own destination page, built exactly like this one. The full ranking
What is Cambodia particularly good at?
✓ Food and farming, scored 5/5. Cambodia is strongly agricultural, self-sufficient in rice and a significant milled-rice exporter, with food only about 8.5 per cent of merchandise imports (World Bank). The Tonle Sap sustains one of the world's most productive inland fisheries, and tropical fruit and vegetables are widely grown. Domestic food production is robust.
✓ Culture, scored 5/5. Khmer culture is deeply alive, anchored by Angkor and by everyday Theravada Buddhist practice, and indigenous highland peoples such as the Bunong, Kreung and Tampuan maintain distinct traditions. Established community-based ecotourism at Chi Phat, Banteay Chhmar and Prek Toal channels income directly to villages and conservation. Land-grabbing and uneven distribution of Angkor revenue are real problems, but genuine community tourism is well developed.
✓ Heritage, scored 5/5. Cambodia holds a deep and living Khmer heritage, most famously the Royal Ballet of Cambodia, the classical Khmer dance tradition that includes the Apsara dance, inscribed by UNESCO in 2008, and the masked drama Lkhon Khol Wat Svay Andet, inscribed in 2018 on the list of heritage in need of urgent safeguarding. Pinpeat and mahori ensembles, shadow puppetry (Sbek Thom) and the bamboo-lute chapei remain active performance traditions. Everyday spiritual life blends Theravada Buddhism with older animist practice, including the veneration of Neak Ta guardian spirits and ancestors. Festivals such as the Water Festival (Bon Om Touk) and Khmer New Year anchor the ritual calendar.
Where does Cambodia score worst?
✕ Organic farming, scored 1/5. Certified organic land is about 0.6 per cent of farmland, roughly 36,000 hectares (FiBL, 2020), a small but growing sector. Organic Kampot pepper and emerging organic rice are the standout products. The certified share stays low.
✕ Recycling, scored 1/5. Cambodia has little formal municipal recycling, and recovery depends largely on informal waste pickers and small buy-back dealers collecting cans, plastic and metal. There is no comprehensive kerbside system. Rates are low.
✕ Pollution, scored 2/5. Phnom Penh introduced a charge on plastic bags at large stores in 2018, but enforcement is limited and plastic litter is heavy in cities and waterways. Urban air is moderate, with a national PM2.5 average around 18 micrograms per cubic metre (IQAir, 2024), well above the WHO guideline, worsened by crop and forest burning. Policy is weak and thinly enforced.
A note from the lens of mother natureSwipe
Organic farming, 1/5
Certified organic land is about 0.6 per cent of farmland, roughly 36,000 hectares (FiBL, 2020), a small but growing sector. Organic Kampot pepper and emerging organic rice are the standout products. The certified share stays low.
Consequence: It is the lowest-scoring part of Cambodia's record, so it is where the score moves first.
Recycling, 1/5
Cambodia has little formal municipal recycling, and recovery depends largely on informal waste pickers and small buy-back dealers collecting cans, plastic and metal. There is no comprehensive kerbside system. Rates are low.
Pollution, 2/5
Phnom Penh introduced a charge on plastic bags at large stores in 2018, but enforcement is limited and plastic litter is heavy in cities and waterways.
The Cambodia Directory.
Everything on Hold The Throne that sits in Cambodia, checked and listed.
How the rest of the world scores Cambodia
Independent global indices, for calibration.
Forest cover
37.6
World Bank, 2024.
Protected land
39.8
World Bank, 2025.
Protected sea
1.5
World Bank, 2025.
Renewable grid
56.4
World Bank, 2021.
CO2 per person
1.1
World Bank, 2024.
Threatened species
221 (mammals, birds, fish & plants)
Recorded figure, sourced on this page.
Control of corruption
22.6 / 100
World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators, 2025. Score from 0 to 100, where 100 is the strongest governance.
Government effectiveness
44.1 / 100
World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators, 2025. Score from 0 to 100, where 100 is the strongest governance.
Rule of law
41.3 / 100
World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators, 2025. Score from 0 to 100, where 100 is the strongest governance.
Political stability
71.5 / 100
World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators, 2025. Score from 0 to 100, where 100 is the strongest governance.
Voice and accountability
27.5 / 100
World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators, 2025. Score from 0 to 100, where 100 is the strongest governance.
Environmental Performance Index
31.2 / 100 · 145 of 177
Yale Environmental Performance Index 2026, ranked 145 of 177 countries assessed.
Ecosystem vitality
43.1 / 100 · 92 of 177
Yale Environmental Performance Index 2026, ranked 92 of 177 countries assessed.
Biodiversity and habitat
62.4 / 100 · 19 of 177
Yale Environmental Performance Index 2026, ranked 19 of 177 countries assessed.
Air quality
26.4 / 100 · 124 of 177
Yale Environmental Performance Index 2026, ranked 124 of 177 countries assessed.
Terrestrial biomes protected
100.0 / 100 · 1 of 177
Yale Environmental Performance Index 2026, ranked 1 of 177 countries assessed.
How Cambodia Is Scored. The Throne Standard.
Every destination on the index is scored the same way, so a 4 in Barbados means exactly what a 4 means in Iceland. No self-declared data and no brochure claims are accepted. Seven pillars are scored from published measurements with the same fixed thresholds everywhere: energy (low-carbon share of electricity, 90% or more scores 5, 70% 4, 50% 3, 25% 2), conservation (land and sea protected), water (safe drinking water, wastewater treated, water stress), organic farmland, recycling, food import dependence and air quality. Where a measurement is not published for a place, that pillar keeps its source-assessed score and is labelled as such. Wildlife, culture, heritage, materials and plant-based eating have no comparable measurement and are assessed from the named sources. The Eco Index is the average of the twelve pillar scores multiplied by 20. Every figure on this page carries its named source and year, and the history on each page names what empire took as plainly as it scores the present.
The 12 pillars every destination is scored on, equally weighted
01
Water
Safe drinking water, wastewater treated and water stress. Measured.
02
Food & farming
How much of the import bill is food: whether the place feeds itself. Measured.
03
Plant-based
How easy it is to eat plant-based, from documented sources.
04
Organic
Certified organic share of farmland. Measured.
05
Conservation
Land and sea legally protected, against the 30 by 30 goal. Measured.
06
Wildlife
What survives, what is endemic, what is lost, from documented sources.
07
Materials
Local natural fibres and craft, from documented sources.
08
Pollution
Air quality (PM2.5, measured) and plastics and waste policy.
09
Recycling
Share of municipal waste recycled. Measured.
10
Energy
Low-carbon share of electricity, nuclear included. Measured.
11
Culture
Living culture and community-led visits, from documented sources.
12
Heritage
What the law keeps standing, from documented sources.
What each 0 to 5 pillar score means, in plain words
0
Absent
nothing verifiable exists
1
Failing
measurably going the wrong way
2
Weak
claims outrun delivery
3
Fair
real effort, mixed results
4
Strong
genuinely good, evidence named
5
Leading
world class, and the trend holds
Where the numbers come from.
The institutions above are the ones cited on this page, ranked by how many of its figures they carry. This same sectioned page renders for all 77 scored destinations, each with its own researched history, comparison charts and three-way future. Read the full methodology
Every figure on this page, and where it came from: 72 sources across 30 institutions
World Bank19 FIGURES
- Forest area (% of land area) AG.LND.FRST.ZS (43.06%), 2023 check
- Terrestrial protected areas ER.LND.PTLD.ZS (39.8%), 2024 check
- Marine protected areas ER.MRN.PTMR.ZS (1.5%), 2025 check
- Food imports (% of merchandise imports) (7.46%), 2024 check
- Threatened species (mammals EN.MAM.THRD.NO, birds EN.BIR.THRD.NO, fish EN.FSH.THRD.NO, higher plants EN.HPT.THRD.NO), 2022 check
- Renewable electricity output (% of total) EG.ELC.RNEW.ZS, 2021 check
- CO2 emissions per capita EN.GHG.CO2.PC.CE.AR5, 2024 check
- GDP (current US$) NY.GDP.MKTP.CD, 2025 check
- International tourist arrivals ST.INT.ARVL, 2020 check
- Agricultural land (% of land area) AG.LND.AGRI.ZS, 2023 check
- Arable land (% of land area) AG.LND.ARBL.ZS, 2023 check
- Agriculture, value added (% of GDP) NV.AGR.TOTL.ZS, 2025 check
- Adult literacy rate SE.ADT.LITR.ZS, 2021 check
- Renewable internal freshwater per capita (m3) ER.H2O.INTR.PC, 2022 check
- Safely managed sanitation (% of population) SH.STA.SMSS.ZS, 2024 check
- Overweight prevalence, adults (%) SH.STA.OWAD.ZS, 2022 check
- Central government debt (% of GDP) GC.DOD.TOTL.GD.ZS, 2023 check
- Population total SP.POP.TOTL, 2025 check
- What a Waste 2.0 country-level dataset check
GBIF occurrence search6 FIGURES
- Cambodia, IUCN Red List category Critically Endangered, class Mammalia, Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, and recorded in Cambodia in GBIF occurrence data (mammal). check
- Cambodia, IUCN Red List category Critically Endangered, class Mammalia corroboration check
- Cambodia, IUCN Red List category Critically Endangered, class Aves, Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, and recorded in Cambodia in GBIF occurrence data (bird). check
- Cambodia, IUCN Red List category Critically Endangered, class Testudines, Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, and recorded in Cambodia in GBIF occurrence data (turtle). check
- Cambodia, IUCN Red List category Critically Endangered, all taxa, Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, and recorded in Cambodia in GBIF occurrence data (species). check
- Cambodia, IUCN Red List category Endangered, class Mammalia, Endangered on the IUCN Red List, and recorded in Cambodia in GBIF occurrence data (mammal). check
Other published sources5 FIGURES
- UNESCO inscribed the Royal Ballet of Cambodia (2008) and Lkhon Khol Wat Svay Andet (2018), the actual element names and dates check
- The dolphin lives only in the Mekong mainstem between Kratie and the Laos border, neither the Cardamoms nor the northern plains check
- NatureLife Cambodia (Cambodian national biodiversity conservation organisation, BirdLife International partner), Cambodia is a last refuge for the critically endangered giant ibis, its national bird, and Mekong Irrawaddy do check
- NatureLife Cambodia (Cambodian national biodiversity conservation organisation, BirdLife International partner) corroboration check
- Chen et al. (2022), 'Large net forest loss in Cambodia's Tonle Sap Lake protected areas during 1992-2019', Ambio (open access full text via Europe PMC) corroboration check
Ngor et al. (2017)4 FIGURES
- 'Spatio-temporal variation of fish taxonomic composition in a South-East Asian flood-pulse system', PLOS ONE, The Tonle Sap sustains one of the world's most productive inland fisheries, and tropical fruit and vegetables check
- 'Spatio-temporal variation of fish taxonomic composition in a South-East Asian flood-pulse system', PLOS ONE corroboration check
- 'Spatio-temporal variation of fish taxonomic composition in a South-East Asian flood-pulse system', PLOS ONE corroboration check
- 'Spatio-temporal variation of fish taxonomic composition in a South-East Asian flood-pulse system', PLOS ONE corroboration check
BirdLife International, IUCN and UNEP-WCMC3 FIGURES
- UN SDG Global Database, terrestrial Key Biodiversity Areas covered by protected areas (%) ER_PTD_TERR, Cambodia, 2025 (54.5%), country-reported check
- UN SDG Global Database, marine Key Biodiversity Areas covered by protected areas (%) ER_MRN_MPA, Cambodia, 2025 (51.0%), country-reported check
- UN SDG Global Database, freshwater Key Biodiversity Areas covered by protected areas (%) ER_PTD_FRHWTR, Cambodia, 2025 (45.0%), country-reported check
Chevance3 FIGURES
- Evans et al. (2014), 'The environmental impact of Cambodia's ancient city of Mahendraparvata (Phnom Kulen)', PLOS ONE, From 802 Angkor became one of the largest pre-industrial cities in the world, with a water system covering hun check
- Evans et al. (2014), 'The environmental impact of Cambodia's ancient city of Mahendraparvata (Phnom Kulen)', PLOS ONE corroboration check
- Evans et al. (2014), 'The environmental impact of Cambodia's ancient city of Mahendraparvata (Phnom Kulen)', PLOS ONE corroboration check
Borah et al. (2026)2 FIGURES
- PARKS 32.1, the journal of the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas, co-authored by a Secretary of State at Cambodia's Ministry of Tourism and a member of the Council of Ministers, Populations are heavily depleted by poaching and the wildlife trade, and tigers are now functionally extinct h check
- PARKS 32.1, the journal of the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas, co-authored by a Secretary of State at Cambodia's Ministry of Tourism and a member of the Council of Ministers corroboration check
FAO2 FIGURES
FAO, Global Forest Resources Assessment2 FIGURES
Mekong River Commission2 FIGURES
- the intergovernmental body of Cambodia, Lao PDR, Thailand and Viet Nam under the 1995 Mekong Agreement, Cambodia is shaped by water, from the Mekong River to the Tonle Sap, South-East Asia's largest freshwater lake check
- the intergovernmental body of Cambodia, Lao PDR, Thailand and Viet Nam under the 1995 Mekong Agreement corroboration check
Pauly et al. (2022)2 FIGURES
- 'High deforestation trajectories in Cambodia slowly transformed through economic land concession restrictions and strategic execution of REDD+ protected areas', Scientific Reports, The reality is undercut by some of the world's highest deforestation rates, illegal logging and forest loss ev check
- 'High deforestation trajectories in Cambodia slowly transformed through economic land concession restrictions and strategic execution of REDD+ protected areas', Scientific Reports corroboration check
UNEP-WCMC2 FIGURES
- Protected Planet, Protected Area Profile for Cambodia from the World Database on Protected Areas, September 2026, The 30x30 target is 30% by 2030, so 28.5 percentage points are still to be designated. check
- Protected Planet, Protected Area Profile for Cambodia from the World Database on Protected Areas, September 2026 corroboration check
UNESCO2 FIGURES
WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme2 FIGURES
Climate Watch (WRI)1 FIGURE
- Net-Zero Tracker check
Constitute Project1 FIGURE
- Cambodia 1993 (rev. 2008) check
FiBL1 FIGURE
- The World of Organic Agriculture, organic farmland statistics check
IEA1 FIGURE
- Cambodia country profile (coal ~59%, renewables ~41%, 2023) check
IEA, World Energy Balances1 FIGURE
- UN SDG Global Database, renewable share of total final energy consumption (%) EG_FEC_RNEW, Cambodia, 2023 (40.1%), modelled estimate check
IFES ElectionGuide1 FIGURE
- Cambodia elections and chambers check
IQAir1 FIGURE
- World Air Quality Report, Cambodia PM2.5 annual average (18.1 ug/m3), 2024 check
IUCN Red List1 FIGURE
- threatened species by country (Summary Statistics, Table 5) check
IUCN Species Survival Commission1 FIGURE
- 'IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria, Version 3.1, Second edition' (IUCN, 2012) corroboration check
Ministry of Environment1 FIGURE
- Cambodia, national environmental authority check
National Institute of Statistics1 FIGURE
- Cambodia, national statistical authority check
Our World in Data1 FIGURE
- CO2 country profile: Cambodia check
Our World in Data / Ember1 FIGURE
- Share of electricity from renewables (35.7% in 2024, down from 65% in 2022 as coal grows) check
UN Protocol and Liaison Service1 FIGURE
- Heads of State, Heads of Government and Ministers for Foreign Affairs, public list dated 20 October 2026 check
UNESCO Institute for Statistics1 FIGURE
- public data API, Cambodia, Public spending on education runs at 2.2% of GDP and 11.6% of all government spending, and secondary enrolment check
World Bank / WHO-UNICEF JMP1 FIGURE
- safely managed drinking water SH.H2O.SMDW.ZS (29.99%), 2024 check