Cambodia’s SAAMBAT Project Reaches 285km of Road Construction

PHNOM PENH, March 16, 2026 (KPT) – Cambodia’s Sustainable Assets for Agriculture Markets, Business and Trade (SAAMBAT) project has made significant progress, completing 285km of rural road works out of a 537km target, officials said Monday.

According to the SAAMBAT Implementation Support Mission, held March 9–13, the project has also finished building six commodity loading areas, three community markets and three ferry landing facilities across Banteay Meanchey, Kampong Thom, Kampot, Svay Rieng and Takeo provinces.

Authorities said the new infrastructure is helping smallholders transport produce more efficiently, reduce costs and improve access to buyers. Jointly implemented by the Ministry of Rural Development and the Ministry of Economy and Finance, the project is co financed by the government, IFAD, the European Investment Bank and the European Union.

By December 2025, more than 8,100 trainees had completed vocational and enterprise training, surpassing targets, while over 5,000 youth received digital literacy instruction. SAAMBAT has also supported eight agri tech start ups, benefiting more than 22,000 end users nationwide.

The project aims to reach 200,000 rural households, strengthening connectivity, skills and market access across 12 provinces.