Tourist arrivals in Cambodia jumped by 35% in 2005, a senior official said on Thursday as the country seeks nearly to triple the number of foreign visitors in the next five years.
More than 1,4-million arrivals were recorded last year, up from just more than a million in 2004, said Thong Kong, secretary of state at the tourism ministry.
The sharp jump puts the country back on track to reach its goal of three million annual arrivals by 2010, following dismal industry figures in 2003 due to the severe acute respiratory syndrome panic and anti-Thai riots, Thong Kong said.
He attributed last year’s increase to political stability and increased security, saying: “We don’t have terrorist problems.”
Cambodia is struggling to recover from three decades of civil war that ended in 1998, and tourism is one of the impoverished country’s few viable money-spinners. The famed Angkor temple complex in north-west Cambodia remains its biggest draw.
The government is trying to persuade tourists to stay longer and see sights other than the World Heritage-listed Angkor temples, and has tried to tap into a number of other areas such as “eco-tourism”.
Most tourists continue to come from Asian nations, Thong Kong said.
He dismissed warnings that a recent political crackdown — nearly a dozen government critics have been jailed or face punishment — is threatening the tourism sector, saying tourism is not involved in politics.
“We are not worried that this could affect the tourism industry. The most important thing is to maintain safety and security,” he said. — AFP