Cambodia - At a Glance

Capital: Phnom Penh
Area: 181 thousand sq. km
Population: 12 million (15.9% urban)
Adult literacy: 59.7 % male, and 22.3% female
Per capita: US$ 260 / annum
Languages: Khmer (official) 95%, French, English
Religion: Theravada Buddhist 95%, other 5%
Life expectancy: 56.8 years

In 1993 Combodia established a multiparty liberal democracy under a constitutional monarchy. While the country has the potential to exploit diverse sources of growth, agriculture, natural resources, light industry, and culture/tourism, this war-torn country has fallen prey to regional economic crisis, civil violence, and political infighting. Over one-third of the population lives below the poverty line and 90 percent of them in rural areas that lack basic infrastructure. Much of the population does not have access to health and educational facilities, safe water, electricity, sanitation, and serviceable roads. Land mines, remnants of war, continue to limit the use of arable land. With bilateral and multilateral assistance, Cambodian leaders are attempting to alleviate poverty and restore social and economic order through reforms, restructuring of civil service, improving the quality of public administration and demobilizing the military.