PublicDisclosureAuthorizedPublicDisclosureAuthorizedPublicDisclosureAuthorized

Cambodia’sRegionalConnectivity:

ofTransportCorridors

UnlockingtheFullPotential

PublicDisclosureAuthorized

2024

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

TheWorldBankteamforpreparationofthereportwasledbyChaninManopiniwes(SeniorTransportEconomist)andSadigAliyev(LeadTransportSpecialist),andcomprisedVeas-naBun(SeniorInfrastructureSpecialist),YinYinLam(SeniorTransportandLogisticsSpe-cialist),BowenWang(SeniorTransportSpe-cialist),BorithLong(TransportConsultant),PhilipSayeg(TransportConsultant),LievenGeerinck(WaterwaysConsultant),PaulPower(RailwaysConsultant)andSocheatAth(Pro-gramAssistant),undertheguidanceofBen-edictEijbergen(TransportPracticeManager,EastAsia,andthePacific)andTaniaMeyer(CountryManagerforCambodia).

Theteamappreciatesvaluableguidanceandcommentsreceivedfrompeerreviewers:RajeshRohatgi(LeadTransportSpecialistandProgramLeader),CordulaRastogi(SeniorEconomist),VictorAragones(SeniorTrans-portSpecialist),andAndrewLosos(SeniorTransportSpecialist).

TheWorldBankteamgratefullyacknowledg-esthecooperationwiththeMinistryofPublicWorksandTransportandothercounterpartsinCambodiaduringimplementationofthestudy.Thegovernmentcounterpartsarenot,how-ever,responsibleforanyoftheconclusionsinthisreport.

TheviewsexpressedinthereportarethoseoftheauthorsanddonotnecessarilyreflecttheviewsoftheWorldBankGroup,itsExecutiveDirectors,orthecountriestheyrepresent.TheWorldBankdoesnotguaranteetheaccuracy,completeness,orcurrencyofthedatainclud-edinthisworkanddoesnotassumerespon-sibilityforanyomissions,ordiscrepanciesintheinformation,orliabilitywithrespecttotheuseoforfailuretousetheinformation,meth-ods,processes,orconclusionssetforth.Theboundaries,colors,denominations,andoth-erinformationshownonanymapinthisworkdonotimplyanyjudgmentonthepartofTheWorldBankconcerningthelegalstatusofanyterritoryortheendorsementoracceptanceofsuchboundaries.

ICAMBODIA’SREGIONALCONNECTIVITY:UNLOCKINGTHEFULLPOTENTIALOFTRANSPORTCORRIDORSEXECUTIVESUMMARY

CONTENTS

ACRONYMSANDABBREVIATIONS IV

EXECUTIVESUMMARY V

CHAPTER1IMPORTANCEOFREGIONALTRANSPORTCONNECTIVITY 1

1.1OverviewofTransportandLogisticsEfficiency 2

1.2TrendsinTrade,FreightDemandandModalShare 4

CHAPTER2:OVERVIEWOFTHETRANSPORTSECTORANDCROSS-BORDERTRANSPORTFACILITATION 10

2.1Cross-BorderTransportFacilitation 11

2.2RoadTransport 14

RoadNetwork 14

RoadTransportIndustry 16

Constraints 17

2.3InlandWaterwaysandMaritimeTransport 19

DirectMaritimeTraffic 20

Cross-borderInlandWaterwayTransportation 22

DomesticWaterwayTransportbetweenPhnomPenhandtheProvinces 24

Constraints 26

2.4RailTransport 28

RailInfrastructureandOperations 28

CurrentRailTraffic 30

MarketPotential 32

PlannedRailwayInvestments 33

Constraints 34

CHAPTER3:CORRIDORANALYSIS 36

3.1DescriptionoftheThreeSelectedCorridors 37

3.2CorridorAnalysis 39

CorridorA–East-WestRoad 40

CorridorB–InlandWaterway 44

CorridorC–ImprovedExistingRail 51

3.3SummaryofCorridorPerformance 53

CHAPTER4:PROPOSEDIMPROVEMENTDIRECTIONS 55

4.1Cross-BorderTransportandTradeFacilitation 57

4.2DevelopResilientandConnectedTransportNetwork 58

RoadConnectivity 58

InlandWaterwayandMaritime 59

RailwayInfrastructureandOperations 60

BOXES

Box2.1AnalysisofRecentandPotentialRiceExportsalongtheMekong 26

Box2.2UseofSmartSealsinTransitContainers 27

Box3.1RoleofInlandWaterwaysinreducingGHGemissions 50

FIGURES

Figure1.1TrendsinExternalTradeValues2010–2021(US$million) 2

Figure1.2GrowthintotalTEUs(includingempties)2010–2022 2

IICAMBODIA’SREGIONALCONNECTIVITY:UNLOCKINGTHEFULLPOTENTIALOFTRANSPORTCORRIDORSCONTENTS

Figure1.3TrendsinExternalTradeValues2010–2020(US$million) 3

Figure1.4LogisticPerformanceIndex 3

Figure1.5LPIRanking2023versus2018 4

Figure1.6ModalSharesofallExport/ImportCargoMovements2015-2022 5

Figure1.7ModalShares2010-2022basedonallExport/ImportTEUs(includingempties) 5

Figure1.8MainContainerGateways2015and2022(allTEUs,includingempties) 6

Figure1.9DistributionofMainExportandImportProducts,Poipet2016and2022(Tons) 7

Figure1.10DistributionofMainExports&ImportsbyCommodity,PPAP2021 8

Figure1.11DistributionofMainExportsandImportsbyCommodity,PAS2022 8

Figure1.12DistributionofMainExportsandImportsbyCountry,PhnomPenhPort2021 9

Figure1.13DistributionofMainExportsandImportsbyCountry,SihanoukvillePort2022 9

Figure2.12009WaterwayTransportAgreementbetweenCambodiaandVietNam 12

Figure2.2RoadMaintenancebyMPWTandMRD(km) 15

Figure2.3RoadPavementCondition2022 15

Figure2.4DirectMaritimeLinks 20

Figure2.5NauticalAccesstoKampotPort 21

Figure2.6CoastalShipmentsusingtheBassacRiver 21

Figure2.7ConnectionsbetweenCambodiaandtheUSMarket 22

Figure2.8WaterwaysinCambodia 24

Figure2.9CurrentandPlannedSub-FeederGeneralPurposeWaterwayTerminals 25

Figure2.10CurrentRailwayLines 29

Figure2.11RailShareofContainerTransportfrom/toPhnomPenhtoSAP(%oftotalTEUs) 31

Figure2.12FuelbyRailtoPAS(kiloliters)2018estimate,2030projection,and2022Actual 32

Figure3.1ThreeIdentifiedTradeCorridorsShowingShort–andMedium-TermDevelopment

Opportunities 38

Figure3.2CorridorA:BaseCase(currenthighways)vsProjectCase(improvedhighways+40%reduction

inbordertimes) 42

Figure3.3CorridorA:EstimatedTransportOperatingCostperTonforSelectedScenarios 43

Figure3.4CorridorB,withTwoAccessRoutestoCaiMep 45

Figure3.5PPAPtoCaiMepviatheBassacRiver,andPPAPtoSingapore 47

Figure3.6CorridorB–FastestJourneyTimebyBarge(Routei) 48

Figure3.7ComparisonRoadCorridor:PhnomPenh–Bavet–HoChiMinhCity,VungTauandCaiMep 49

Figure3.8CorridorB:Waterway(Routei)vsComparisonRoad–EstimatedTransportOperatingCostper

TonandJourneyTimes 49

Figure3.9CorridorC,ImprovedExistingRail:LaemChabang–Poipet–PhnomPenh–SihanoukvillePort

(880km) 51

Figure3.10ComparisonRoadScenario–ThailandtoSihanoukvillePort 52

Figure3.11CorridorC:EstimatedTransportOperatingCostperTonandJourneyTimesforSelected

Scenarios 53

TABLES

Table1.1TradeVolumesatInternationalGateways2022 6

Table2.1BorderRecentClearanceTimes 13

Table2.2Cambodia’sRoadNetworkPavementCoverage(2017-2022) 14

Table2.3ImpactofFloodDisruptionsonRoadAccessibilitytoHospitals,Schools,andJobs 16

Table2.4ImportantDimensionsofContainerVessels 19

Table2.5RailFreightMovementsbyType2022 30

Table2.6FuelandContainerModalSplitatSihanoukvillePort,2022 31

Table3.1EstimateofOperatingCosts 43

Table3.2SummaryofCorridorPerformance 54

IIICAMBODIA’SREGIONALCONNECTIVITY:UNLOCKINGTHEFULLPOTENTIALOFTRANSPORTCORRIDORSCONTENTS

ACRONYMSANDABBREVIATIONS

ADB

AsianDevelopmentBank

ACTS

ASEANCustomsTransitSystem

AFAFGIT

ASEANFrameworkAgreementontheFacilitationofGoodsinTransit

AH

AsianHighway

ASEAN

AssociationofSoutheastAsianNations

ASYCUDA

AutomatedSystemsforCustomsData

CBTA

Cross-BorderTransportAgreement(GMS)

CITLS

ComprehensiveIntermodalTransportandLogisticsSystemMasterPlanfor2023–2033

CIQ

Customs,ImmigrationandQuarantine

CLA

CambodiaLogisticAssociation

CLV

Cambodia-LaoPDR-VietNam

DWT

Deadweight(metric)tons

ERIA

EconomicResearchInstituteforASEANandEastAsia

FACBRTC

FrameworkAgreementforCross-BorderRailwayTransportConnectivity(GMS)

GDP

GrossDomesticProduct

GMS

GreaterMekongSubregion

GPS

Globalpositioningsystem

Kg

Kilogram

Km

Kilometer

Kph

Kilometerperhour

LPG

Liquidpetroleumgas

LPI

LogisticsPerformanceIndex

MT

MasterPlanforASEANConnectivity

MPWT

MinistryofPublicWorksandTransport

NR

NationalRoad

PPAP

PhnomPenhAutonomousPort

RGC

RoyalGovernmentofCambodia

PAS

SihanoukvilleAutonomousPort

SEZ

SpecialEconomicZone

SRT

StateRailwayofThailand

ton

Metrictonor1,000kg

TEUTwenty-footequivalent

IVCAMBODIA’SREGIONALCONNECTIVITY:UNLOCKINGTHEFULLPOTENTIALOFTRANSPORTCORRIDORSACRONYMSAND

ABBREVIATIONS

A

EXECUTIVESUMMARY

ReportObjectivesandStructure

Cambodia’sexport-drivengrowthhasresult-edinincreasedfreightdemand.Container-izedimportandexportcargomovementhasincreasedmorethanfive-foldoverthepast12years.By2030,itisexpectedthattradevolumesmovingalonghighwaysandthroughports,airports,andwarehouseswilldouble.However,hightransportandlogisticscostsaremajorbottleneckstoCambodia’seconomiccompetitivenessanddiversification.

TheRoyalGovernmentofCambodia(RGC)developedtheComprehensiveIntermodalTransportandLogisticsSystem(CITLS)Mas-terPlanfor2023–20331tosupportimprovingtheperformanceandefficiencyofthetransportsectorandsupportingtheachievementofthenationaldevelopmentobjectivesasdefinedintheRGC’sPentagonalStrategyPhase12.However,manyoftheprojectsputforwardintheCITLSareintheconceptualphaserequir-ingfurthertechnicalstudiesandprioritizationpriortosecuringfinancingfromthepublicandprivatesectors.

ThisreportpreparedbytheWorldBankteamaimstocomplementtheRGC’seffortsbyfo-cusingonimmediateinvestmentsandpolicyactionstounlockopportunitiesalongtheex-istingtransportcorridorsinCambodia.The

analysisandproposalsdescribedinthisreportfocusontheshorttomedium-termpriorities.Byprovidingalternativeinsightsontheroleandperformanceoftheexistingroads,water-waysandmaritimetransport,railways,andcross-bordertradefacilitationthereportisde-signedtocomplementtheCITLS.Throughoutthecourseofthisstudy,stakeholderconsul-tationswereconductedwithinvolvedpublicsectorinstitutionsandmajorprivatesectorplayersinfreighttransportationandlogistics3.

Thereportisstructuredasfollows:

?Chapter1–discussionoftrade,transport,andlogisticsefficiency;trendsindemandandmodalcompetitiveness;andthecurrentcross-bordertrade.

?Chapter2–analysisofthetransportsub-sec-torscoveringroads,inlandwaterways,andmaritimetransport,andrailways.

?Chapter3–analysisofthethreeprioritizedtransportcorridorsbythestudy.

?Chapter4–proposepriorityimprovementdirections.

1ComprehensiveIntermodalTransportandSystemMasterPlan2023-2033(RoyalGovernmentofCambodia,Au-gust2023).TheMasterPlanaimstoimprovedomesticandinternationalconnectivityandpromotecontinuedsustainable,andequitable,economicgrowth.Ithasfourmajorobjectives.TheMasterPlanidentifies174priorityprojects,including94roadprojects,8railwayprojects,23inlandwaterwaytransportprojects,20maritimetransportprojects,10airtransportprojects,

15logisticsprojects,and4additionalprojects.Theseprojects,includingbetterinterconnectionsamongmodesandlogisticscenters,aredividedinto90short-termandmedium-termprojectsand91long-termprojects.Thetotalcostoftheseinvest-mentsisestimatedatover$30billion.MostoftheseinvestmentsareanticipatedbytheMasterPlantobeimplementedbyprivateinvestors.

2PentangleStrategy–Phase1forGrowth,Employment,Equity,Efficiency,andSustainability:BuildingtheFounda-tionTowardsRealizingtheCambodiaVision2050(RoyalGovernmentofCambodia.August2023).

3Consultationswiththeprivatesectorwereconductedwith(i)shippingcompaniesoperatingbargesalongtheMe-kongRiverbetweenVietNamandCambodia;(ii)internationalshippingandlogisticscompanythatutilizesrail,road,andbargestotransportcargoestomaritimeports;(iii)localcompaniesmainlyutilizingtrucksbetweenCambodiaandVietNam;(iv)severalcompaniesinvolvedinriceproductionandtrading;(v)CambodianLogisticsAssociation;(vi)RoyalRailway(Cam-bodianrailwayconcessionaire);and(vii)operatorsofboutiquepassengercruiseservicesbetweenVietNamandSiemReap.

VCAMBODIA’SREGIONALCONNECTIVITY:UNLOCKINGTHEFULLPOTENTIALOFTRANSPORTCORRIDORSEXECUTIVESUMMARY

B

CountryContext

Economicgrowthaveraged7.1percentovertheperiod1995–2021,enablingCambodiatobecomealowermiddle-incomeeconomyby2015.Growthhasbeendrivenbyafewexport-orientedsectors,includingthetour-ism,agriculture,garments,andconstructionsector.However,theCOVID-19pandemicledtoa3.1percentcontractionin2020,followedbyarelativelysubduedrecoverywith3per-centgrowthin2021.By2023,GDPgrewby5percent,andin2024,itisestimatedtohaveincreasedto5.34percent.ThedeterioratingglobaleconomycontinuestoposechallengestoCambodia’sexport-driveneconomy.

AlmostallofCambodia’sexportgrowthoverthepastfiveyearshascomefromNorthAmer-ica,whichovertooktheEuropeanUnionin2019tobecomeCambodia’slargestexportmarket.4TheUnitedStatesofAmerica’sshareofexportsrosefrom24percentin2018to41percentin2021,whiletheEuropeanUnion’ssharefellfrom30percentto18percentoverthesameperiod.Asia’ssharedroppedfrom46percentto41percentoverthesameperiod.Thesemarketsincreasinglyrequireefficientandsustainabletransportandlogisticssolu-tions.

Recenttrademeasuredbytheuseoftwen-ty-tonequivalent(TEU)containersgrewfrom317,200TEUsin2010to1,600,000TEUsin2022anincreaseofover400%.ThemaincontainergatewaysareSihanoukvillePortformaritimetransport,andPhnomPenhAutono-mousPort(containerterminalLM17located28kilometersdownstreamofPhnomPenh)usingtheMekongRivertoVietNam,andusingroadtransporttoVietNamviaBavet.Despitethecontinuedinvestmentinalltransportmodesinrecentyears,inlandwaterwaysthatcatertoNorthAmericanandAsianmarketsviatransit

inVietNamhaveslightlyoutperformedroadtransporttoVietNamsince2015.Waterwaysaresuitedtobulkandcontainerizedtransportandhavesignificantlylowertransportcostsperton-kilometerthanroads.

TheWorldBank’sLogisticsPerformanceIndex2023(LPI)pointstosignificantlogisticschal-lengesinCambodia,whichisranked115thoutof138countries.Furthermore,thetimeittakestocomplywithborderandexportformalities(forbothimportsandexports)ismuchhigherinCambodiathaninneighboringcountries.Theseinefficienciesintransportationandlogisticsaremajorbottlenecksconstrainingthediversificationoftheeconomyanditsin-tegrationintohighervalue-addedregionalandglobalvaluechains.

TradehasbeenandwillcontinuetobeanimportantgrowthengineanddeterminantofCambodia’sabilitytomeetitsgoalsofbe-comingahigh-incomecountryby2050.Toaccommodateincreasedfuturetradeflows,allmodesmustperformalargerandmoreef-ficienttransporttask.Asintherecentpast,significantnewinvestmentisplannedinwa-terways,roads,andportsthatcanunderpinasharpgrowthintradedemand.Inparticular,an80percentincreaseinthecontainerhan-dlingcapacityofPPAPLM17containertermi-nalisplannedby2029.Thereisasignificantopportunitytoincreasetheshareofexportsbyinlandwaterwaysandbyrailtransportthathaveuntappedpotential.However,thereareseveralchallenges,aslistedbelow,thatin-creasethecostsoftradeandreduceefficiency,speed,andreliability.Asaresult,theRGCisprioritizingthedevelopmentofregionalcon-nectivityandimprovedefficiencylogistics,asoneofitsstrategicpillarsinthePentagonalStrategyPhase1.

4CambodiaSystematicCountryDiagnostic(WorldBank,

2023).

VICAMBODIA’SREGIONALCONNECTIVITY:UNLOCKINGTHEFULLPOTENTIALOFTRANSPORTCORRIDORSEXECUTIVESUMMARY

CKeyChallenges

5Thesefiguresrepresentdatafor2018.

6MPAC2025hasbeenadoptedbyASEANmembercountriesto“achieveaseamlesslyandcomprehensivelyconnectedandintegratedASEANthatwillpromotecompetitiveness,inclusiveness,andagreatersenseofcommunity.”MPAC2025focusesonfivekeyareas:sustainableinfrastructure,digitalinnovation,seamlesslogistics,regulatoryexcellence,andpeoplemobility.

Transportandlogisticsconstraintsarein-

?

Bottlenecksexistalongregionalroadcor-

creasingthecostsofdomesticandcross-bor-

ridors.Goodprogresshasbeenmadein

dertrade,creatinginefficienciesinsupply

improvingmostnationalroads,including

chains,andreducingCambodia’sinternational

connectingPhnomPenhwithmajortrade

competitiveness.Theseconstraintsaresum-

gatewayssuchastheSihanoukvilleport.But

marizedbelow:

amajorgapexistsalongtheregionalEast-Westcorridor(thesectionrunningfrom

?Logisticsandtransportationcostsare

SiemReaptotheOyadavcheckpointatthe

high.NationallogisticscostsinCambodia

Cambodia-VietNamborder).Thiscorridor

(2020)areestimatedat26percentofGDP,

connectsCambodiawithVietNam,Thai-

whichishigherthanmostASEANcountries,

land,andLaoPDR,andispartoftheGreater

includingThailand(14percent)andViet

MekongSubregion(GMS)corridorsandthe

Nam(20percent).Transportationcostsare

MasterPlanforASEANConnectivity(MPAC

particularlyhigh,representingmorethan40

2025).6Thelackofdevelopmentofthis

percentoftotallogisticscosts(alongside

corridorisamajorconstrainttoeconomic

warehousing),pointingtosignificantineffi-

growthandjobcreationintheless-devel-

cienciesinthetransportsector5.

opednortheasternpartofthecountry.

?Thereareinefficienciesinborderclear-

?

WaterwayconnectivitybetweenCam-

anceandtradeprocedures.Borderclear-

bodiaandVietNamisavitalassetbutis

anceisslowandcostlyduetopoorlysyn-

underutilizedduetocapacityconstraints

chronizedproceduresamongcountriesand

andadministrativebarrierssuchasthe

inadequatecross-borderfacilities.Imple-

inspectionoftransitcontainers.Maritime

mentationofthenationalsinglewindowand

portsinVietNam(suchasCaiMepandCat

ASYCUDA(AutomatedSystemforCustoms

Lai)accommodatelinercontainervessels

Data)hasbeenslow.Theintroductionofthe

boundfortheUnitedStatesandEastAsia

single-stopinspectionandcommoncontrol

respectivelyandplayanimportantrolefor

areawithThailandandVietNamhasbeen

transitofCambodianexports.Today,there

delayed.

aretworiverporthubsandsixinland-water-waysub-feedergeneralpurposeterminals

?TheinfrastructureinvestmentgapinCam-

inCambodia;buttheircapacityislimited,

bodiaremainslarge.Publicinvestmentin

constrainingaccessandpreventingoptimal

infrastructureaccountedforonly3.2per-

consolidationoffreightmovements.This

centofGDPduring2019–2022,whileesti-

limitedcapacityinhibitsbargeconnections

matedannualinvestmentneedsareabout

ofover2,000deadweighttons(DWT),which

10percentofGDP.Thetransportsector

ismorecost-efficientforfreighttransport.

accountsforasubstantialportionofthese

Thecurrentinefficienciesincross-border

investmentneeds.About85percentofna-

transitprocedureshavetimeandcostimpli-

tionalroadsarepaved,butonly38percent

cationsforCambodia’sexportsandimports

ofprovincialroadsand10percentofrural

requiringcollaborationbetweentheneigh-

roadshavepavement,indicatingamajorgap

boringcountriessuchasCambodiaandViet

inclimate-resilientlast-mileconnectivity.Maintenancespendingisalsoinadequate;

Namtofindmutuallybeneficialsolutions.

becauseofthis,thecurrentvalueofroadas-

?

Thefullpotentialofrailwaysinfacilitat-

setsisestimatedtobemorethanone-third

ingtradewithThailandhasnotbeenreal-

belowtheirpotentialmaximumnetpresent

ized,despitetheircapacitytoplayamore

value.

significantrole.Theroleoftherailwaysin

VIICAMBODIA’SREGIONALCONNECTIVITY:UNLOCKINGTHEFULLPOTENTIALOFTRANSPORTCORRIDORSEXECUTIVESUMMARY

D

regionaltradeislimited–estimatedatlessthanonepercentoftotaldomesticfreightmovements.Ashortageofexistingrollingstockanddilapidatedinfrastructurehavebeenthemainconstraintsfortherailwayinattractingnewbusinesses,includingalongtheraillinkbetweenPhnomPenhtoPoipet.

?Thetruckingfleetisoldandinefficient.

TheaverageageoftrucksinCambodiaistypically20yearsorolder,manyofwhichareimportedsecondhand.Comparedtonewtrucks,secondhandpurchaseshaveresultedinslowertravelspeeds,signifi-cantlyreducedfuelefficiency,increasedmaintenancecosts,andgeneratedhigheremissions.Moreover,theabsenceofhar-monizedtechnicalstandardsforcross-bor-

dertruckingoperationsforfactorssuchasaxleload,vehiclelengthandwidth,impos-esconstraintsonefficientregionaltruckingoperations.

?Climate-relatednaturaldisastersdisruptlogisticssupplychains.Cambodiaishigh-lyexposedtoclimatechangeimpacts,in-cludingheavyrainfallandfloods.Nineoutoftenprovincesanalyzedfacemorethan15percentlossofaccesstoemploymentbasessuchasfactoriesandagriculturewhenroadsareflooded.Furthermore,itisestimatedthataseven-dayclosureofkeyroadcorridorsbya50-yearfloodeventwouldresultinafivepercentindirectcostincreasefortradepart-nersforeachdayofdisruptionfromfreightreroutingorblockage.7

ProposedInvestmentstoImproveCambodia’sRegionalConnectivity

Theconclusionsoftheanalysisoftradecorri-dors(Chapter3)showtheimportanceofim-provingregionalconnectivityalongthefollow-ingtransportcorridors(FigureES1):

?CorridorA:TheEast-WestregionalroadcorridorconnectingLaemChabang–Poi-pet–SiemReap–Oyadav–QuyNhon(Thailand–Cambodia–VietNam,andCam-bodia–LaoPDR).Thegapininternationalroadconnectivityisduetothepoorcon-ditionofthesectioninCambodiabetweenSiemReapandtheborderwithVietNam(about400km).Currently,duetopoorcon-ditionthiscorridorislightlytraffickedbutitisdirectlyconnectedtoLaoPDRandVietNamandhassignificantdevelopmentandinternationaltradepotential.

?CorridorB:TheexistingInlandWaterwaycorridorfromPhnomPenh–VipassanaKamsomnor–CaiMep(Cambodia–VietNam).Thisisakeycurrenttradecorridor.GreateruseofwaterwaytransportontheMekongRiverisanalternativetoroadtoVietNamwithsignificantlylowertransportcostsalthoughattheexpenseoflongertrav-

eltimesthatareunlikelytobeasignificantdriveroffreightmodechoiceaslongastrav-eltimesarereliable.

?CorridorC:TheExistingRailcorridorfromPoipet–PhnomPenh–SihanoukvillePort(Cambodia-Thailand).ForconnectiontoThailand,upgradedexistingrailisanalter-nativetoroadtransportwithlowertransportcosts.

Theseprioritizedcorridorscomprisepartoftheexistingbackbonecorridorsforthethreemodes–road,rail,andinlandwaterway–whichcanbeimprovedwithrelativelylowercostsandintheshort-to-mediumterm(com-paredtonewgreenfieldcorridors).Theydonotcompete,butcomplementeachother,byservingdifferentgeographicareas,regionalmarkets,anddestinations.However,itisnot-edthatwell-designedinlandwaterwayandrailwaymeasuresthatcatertoshipperpref-erenceswouldhaveimportantdecarboniza-tionbenefitsinadditiontoeconomicbenefits.Thefollowinginvestmentsareproposedtoen-hanceCambodia’sregionalconnectivity:

7CambodiaClimateChangeDevelopmentReport.(WorldBank,2023).

VIIICAMBODIA’SREGIONALCONNECTIVITY:UNLOCKINGTHEFULLPOTENTIALOFTRANSPORTCORRIDORSEXECUTIVESUMMARY

FIGUREES.1ThreePrioritizedTradeCorridorsShowingShort–

andMedium-TermDevelopmentOpportunities

Source:Studyteam.

?CorridorA:ImproveSiemReap-OyadavRoadaspartoftheEast–Westcorridorbe-tweenThailand,Cambodia,andVietNam(andtheonlyroadcorridorconnectingCam-bodiawithLaoPDR).UnderMPAC2025,thisroadlinkisprioritizedforimprovementanddesignationasAsianHighway21,whichcon-nectsCambodiatoQuyNhon,animportantdomesticandregionalshippingportinVietNam.Investmentinthemainroadinfra-structureshouldbecomplementedbyim-provementstotheconditionandresilienceoffeederroadslinkingtoagricultureandproductionareas,modernizationofthebor-der-crossingfacility,andthepromotionofprivateinvestmentstodevelopvalue-addedservicesandconsolidationfacilitiesalongthecorridor.Totakefulladvantageofroadinvestments,rationalizingduties,andspe-cialtaxesonimportsofnewtrucksandvig-orouslypursuingharmonizationofvehicletechnicalstandardswouldhelpincentivizethereplacementoftheoutdatedfleetwithlarger,cleaner,andefficientvehicles.

?CorridorB:ImprovetheinlandwaterwayconnectionwithVietNamandfarmhinter-landinCambodia.