Action at grass roots

Sewing the seeds ... the Hotel de la Paix Sewing Centre teaches skills. (Photo: Leisa Tyler)

Angkor's tourist income is funding community projects beyond the Cambodian heritage site, writes Leisa Tyler.

March 26, 2011

The Age (Australia)

Cambodia's Angkor Heritage Park is the fastest-growing tourism attraction of any World Heritage monument. Increasing at an average rate of 30 per cent a year, arrivals are expected to reach 3 million this year, up from 200,000 visitors 10 years ago.

Tourism has turned the temples into one of the most sought-after experiences in the world and brought development and infrastructure to the nearby town of Siem Reap.

But few people in Siem Reap province benefit from these tourist dollars. Predominantly rural, the people remain among the poorest in Cambodia, many living on less than a dollar a day.
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