By Julie Masis
Asian Times Online
PHNOM PENH – Cambodia’s capital today is unrecognizable compared with five years ago. Then the tallest structure was a seven-story hotel and vast areas of the city would have appeared dark due to a lack of reliable electricity.
Now there are nine buildings of 20 or more stories and 55 structures of between 10 and 19 stories, according to the city’s department of construction. More high-rises are on the way: projects have been approved to build at least 200 additional buildings with more than 10 floors, including a 60-story skyscraper.
New apartment blocks are proliferating and land prices are soaring, to as high as US$3,000 a square meter from around $100 five years ago.
The building spree has propelled Cambodia’s recent fast economic growth, the second-highest in Asia after China over the past decade, and increased consumer spending power. Prime Minister Hun Sen has presided over the country’s rapid capitalist transformation after decades of debilitating civil war – although about one third of the population still subsists under the poverty line.
No comments:
Post a Comment