International tourist port in Kep on track for completion, says governor
International tourist port in Kep on track for completion, says governor
The renovation of the international tourist port in Kep province is about 30 per cent complete, with construction scheduled to be completed by the end of the year, provincial governor Ken Satha told The Post on Thursday.He said the $1 million renovation is going smoothly. “The port will play a vital role in enhancing the lives of the locals and bring tourists from neighbouring countries and Cambodians who want to visit Kep province, and possibly further boost seafood sales.
“We are currently constructing a standard tourism port that will allow modern ships with 200-300 passengers from neighbouring countries such as Vietnam and Thailand to dock,” said Satha.
He said the port was built by the government in the early 1990s to serve local communities only.
Once the port is repaired, he said, the province will see a surge in tourists as the provincial authorities works on a master plan to develop the infrastructure and facilities in a number of target tourism areas – such as islands and along the coast.
Provincial Department of Public Works and Transport director Mam Touch said the port, located across the Chhak Kep bay from Koh Tonsay island (also known as Rabbit island), is 3,400sqm and has been renovated by the Ministry of Public Works and Transport.
Cambodia Association of Travel Agents president Chhay Sivlin said the province not only offers beautiful beaches and a beautiful environment with mangrove forest areas, but also fresh seafood.
She said the port will go far in promoting the area as a tourist destination once sea tours can be organised.
As the number of tourists dwindles in the Kingdom and across the world, the Ministry of Tourism continues to prepare new policies to strengthen the sector’s attractiveness, particularly keeping the price of tourism-related services down.
On Tuesday, provincial governor Satha told a press conference at the Office of the Council of Ministers that a 7km road along the provincial coast is under construction, which will link to other provinces and will eventually stretch from Thailand to Vietnam.
He said the beach road in the province will be completed this year using the government budget. As of now, 40 per cent had been completed and he expects the province would get financing from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to complete the rest.
“This road has started with the construction of a cement base. We will cooperate with ADB and the Ministry of Public Works and Transport on the project and continue to the Prek Chak border crossing in Kampot province,” Satha said.
He said the road construction was initiated by Prime Minister Hun Sen. The road runs along the beach and is 18m wide. It will stretch from Prek Chak to the border of Vietnam.
Kep provincial Department of Public Works and Transport director Mam Touch told The Post that the total length of the coastal road in Kep is 14km. He said the 7km mentioned is for local commuters.
“It is the first road in the province to stretch from [the port across from] Rabbit Island to Kon Beach,” Touch said. However, he said he was unaware of the cost to build it.
A Kep provincial administration progress report said the coastal province welcomed 1,747,622 tourists last year. Prior to the Covid-19 outbreak, it was projected to receive two million tourists this year.
