PHNOM PENH: To meet investment needs and economic activity, banking and financial institutions providing loans to the private sector totaling 205.4 trillion riels (US $ 50.7 billion) by the end of the first quarter of 2022, a 22.4 percent increase from the end of the first quarter last year.

The National Bank of Cambodia announced on June 30 that loans to the private sector cover the construction sector, wholesale and retail trade, agricultural services, household units, and manufacturing.

Even though Covid-19 is a global epidemic that has posed a challenge to the construction industry, Cambodia has not stagnated, only grown at a slightly slower pace. Foreign investment and Chinese companies have fueled Cambodia’s construction boom, particularly in infrastructure, real estate, commercial, and housing.

According to the Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning, and Construction’s annual report for 2021, there are 4,303 construction projects nationwide with a total floor area of 12,998,072 square meters and an estimated investment value of $ 5,333,798,525.

In comparison to 2020, there are 4,841 projects with a total floor area of 29,425,751 square meters and an estimated investment of 7,753,349,289 USD, a 31.21 percent decrease. The Ministry has jurisdiction over 388 projects totaling 10,420,293 square meters with an estimated investment of 4,218,910,127 dollars.