Cambodian PM bans new casinos in Kep, Kampot

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet has banned new casinos in Kep and Kampot on the southern coast. The ban exempts Bokor Mountain in Kampot Province, which already has a casino industry.

Manet’s order is designed to “diversify investment in hotel and hospitality, tourism, manufacturing, industry, agriculture, trade and special economic zones.”

His order also says that the ban is designed with religious and cultural preservation in mind, as well as security and protection for popular tourist destinations.

Cambodian casinos: for foreigners only
Cambodia now has 184 licensed gaming halls, according to the Commercial Gambling Management Commission of Cambodia (CGMC). Of those, 100 are located along the coast. Forty-eight are in provinces bordering Thailand. The remainder operate on the border with Vietnam.

Phnom Penh hosts a single casino, NagaWorld. The casino was first opened as a temporary facility on a boat in the Mekong River in May 1995 before moving ashore to its current facility in 2003. Operator NagaCorp Ltd. holds exclusive rights to gaming within 200 kilometers (124 miles) of the capital through 2045.

All Cambodian casinos are open to foreigners only. Gambling has been illegal for locals since 1996. In 2020, the country enacted Article 19 of its Law on Management of Commercial Gaming, prohibiting gambling facilities in certain locations for cultural or religious reasons.

But Article 20 of the law states that casinos constructed in some locations before the law took effect are exempt. In 2023, state revenues from casinos in Cambodia exceeded KHR81.84bn (€18.4m/£15.5m/US$20m).

Changing fortunes
Yong Kim Eng, of the People Center for Development and Peace, says Cambodian casinos should be limited to three already-crowded markets. Sihanoukville, on the Gulf of Thailand, is home to dozens of Chinese-run casinos.

The border town of Bavet serves Vietnamese patrons, who may gamble at only one locals casino at home. Poipet, on the Thai border, serves gamblers from that country. But Thailand could reclaim domestic players if it moves ahead with plans to legalise casino resorts.

Chhort Bunthang, a researcher at the Royal Academy of Cambodia, told the Phnom Pehn Post that balancing the good and bad from casinos is a difficult task.

“Apart from generating revenue for the state, casinos provide income for investors and employees,” he said. “By law, Cambodian citizens are not allowed to enter casinos. But the question is whether we can control this. If managed well, it will not affect our people, but poor management could have negative consequences.”