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Cambodia’s microfinance shakeup: in whose interest?
With Cambodia’s microfinance sector reeling from the central bank’s controversial decision to introduce an interest rate cap, Southeast Asia Globe investigates the repercussions
— Southeast Asia Globe

MFIs predict lower earnings
With the interest rate cap of 18 percent in full force for all new and restructured microfinance loans after the National Bank of Cambodia (NBC) issued a populist measure to curb high interest rates, microfinance institutions (MFIs) are starting to give predictions for lower profits this year as the new lending reality takes hold.
— The Phnom Penh Post

Heat Stress ‘Dramatically’ Reduces Productivity, Study Finds
Research into the effects of heat stress on sugarcane workers in Kompong Cham province found that productivity was dramatically reduced as daytime temperatures soared, a troubling finding given Cambodia’s lagging labor efficiency and expected warming over the next 30 years due to climate change.
— The Cambodia Daily (paywall)

Cambodian police seek shoe-throwing critic of ruling party
Police in Cambodia are seeking to arrest a woman who was seen on a video clip on Facebook showing her throwing a shoe at a billboard of the ruling Cambodian People’s Party.
— ABC News

Ministry, Cambodian Journalists Strengthen Links to China
Information Ministry officials and state-affiliated Cambodian journalists will receive training from and pay visits to their Chinese counterparts under a new agreement signed by the two countries on Monday.
— The Cambodia Daily (paywall)

Hun Sen Urges Philippine Investment for Ailing Rice Sector
Prime Minister Hun Sen said on Monday he had urged Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte to invest more heavily in Cambodia’s rice sector, while also acknowledging the need to lower rice processing costs and find new export markets to boost the competitiveness of Cambodia’s most important crop.
— The Cambodia Daily (paywall)

China, Cambodia sign deal on information cooperation
China and Cambodia signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on information cooperation here on Monday. The deal was inked between Cambodian Information Minister Khieu Kanharith and Jiang Jianguo, chief of China’s State Council Information Office.
— Global Times

Leakers take on politicians’ Facebook ‘likes’
In the latest tit-for-tat round of leaks in Cambodian politics, two rival leakers each released remarkably similar images of emails yesterday purporting to show Prime Minister Hun Sen and his rival Sam Rainsy spending hundreds of thousands of dollars buying Facebook “likes”.
— The Phnom Penh Post

Minister asks for help in drug fight
Interior Minister Sar Kheng has asked businesspeople to help fund Cambodia’s ongoing drug crackdown– including rehabilitation.
— The Phnom Penh Post

Transparency International opens up to new members
The Cambodian arm of anti-corruption group Transparency International aims to get greater grassroots support for its work and turn itself into a “social movement” by opening up to individual and group memberships.
— The Phnom Penh Post

Cambodia Raises Diplomatic Alarm with Seabee Decision
Cambodia’s decision to walk out on a contract with a U.S. military unit has set-off alarm bells within the diplomatic community and raised concerns that Prime Minister Hun Sen is prepared to sacrifice millions of dollars worth of humanitarian work to appease regional powers like Russia and China.
— VOA

American Journalist Recalled Cambodian Refugees Escaping War in 1979
Greg Barron was a young American journalist among those who went to Thai-Cambodia border camps to capture the despair of Cambodian refugees escaping the Khmer Rouge atrocities in November, 1979.
— VOA

A Window Into the Inequality of Contemporary Cambodia
A country in which inequity in nearly every aspect of life leaves little hope for those who are not a part of, or do not have access to, the ruling CPP network and its system of privilege; where the Bar Association only admits 35 to 70 lawyers a year although hundreds graduate annually; where tens of thousands of workers are stranded in Phnom Penh, unable to secure the most menial job, and have no prospects if they were to return to their provinces.
— The Cambodia Daily (paywall)

Cambodia’s Homeless Dance to a Different Tune
Poverty rates in Cambodia remain stubbornly high, despite the country’s booming economy, and that is creating problems like homeless youth. However, young artists are hoping to change that through the spread of hip-hop music and a strict no-nonsense attitude.
— VOA

Sok An Cabinet Chief to Become Lawmaker
Chea Vandeth, an advisor to the Council of Ministers under the late deputy prime minister Sok An, is slated to become a lawmaker following a parliamentary meeting on Friday last week.
— VOA

Cambodia Border Officer Known For ‘Faking’ Accident Shoots Colleague
A border officer in Cambodia who made headlines last year for pretending to be hit by a car driven by an opposition activist is now being sought by police for shooting a colleague over the weekend, a spokesperson for the country’s Ministry of Interior said Monday.
— Radio Free Asia

Cambodia’s Ruling Party to Take Legal Action Against Woman For Throwing Shoe
Cambodia’s ruling party will take legal action against a woman who threw a shoe at a party banner that was posted alongside photos of Prime Minister Hun Sen and a high-ranking parliamentary official, a Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) spokesman said Monday.
— Radio Free Asia

Feature photo Anita
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