Cambodia reopens 2 weeks early, buoyed by high vaccine rates
Cambodia has reopened its borders to fully vaccinated travelers two weeks earlier than originally planned, as it emerges from a lengthy lockdown bolstered by one of the world’s highest rates of immunization against COVID-19
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Cambodia reopened its borders to fully vaccinated travelers on Monday, two weeks earlier than originally planned, as it emerges from a lengthy lockdown bolstered by one of the world's highest rates of immunization against COVID-19.
The program allows visitors to skip quarantine measures if they are fully vaccinated, test negative 72 hours before they enter the country and test negative upon their arrival.
Prime Minister Hun Sen decided to move up the opening from Nov. 30 to Nov. 15 to start revitalizing the country's economic and social activity as soon as possible, buoyed by the fact that 88% of Cambodians are now fully vaccinated.
“The situation has changed,” Hun Sen said in an audio message shared on social media.
The previous plan had been to phase in the reopening by initially restricting travelers to two seaside provinces, but the new scheme means fully vaccinated travelers will be free to visit anywhere in the country after a negative test, the ministry said.
Unvaccinated travelers will still have to undergo a strict 14-day quarantine upon arrival and undergo a series of coronavirus tests before they can travel further.
Cambodia in 2019, before the pandemic, received 6.6 million foreigners who accounted for nearly $5 billion in revenue. Most of them visited the famous Angkor temples in Siem Reap province and seaside destinations, according to the Tourism Ministry.
In 2020, the number of visitors dropped sharply to 1.3 million and earnings from them plunged to about $1 billion.
Cambodia's vaccination drive started slowly but has ramped up rapidly. Children from age 5 and up have been included in the program since the beginning of November.
Restrictions on domestic tourism, schools and other sectors were also lifted at the start of the month.
The Health Ministry reported 52 new COVID-19 cases Monday and five deaths, bringing Cambodia's total to 119,588 cases and 2,872 fatalities since the start of the pandemic.