Cambodia begins to build university dorms with Chinese aid

KRATIE, Cambodia -- Cambodia on Wednesday broke ground for the construction of four dormitory buildings for teachers and students at the University of Kratie here under China's grant aid.

Touch Visalsok, secretary of state at Cambodia's Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport, said the construction of the buildings with 80 rooms was made under the Phase 2 project of China-aided University of Kratie.

He said the project would also include the construction of a basketball court, a food processing laboratory, and an agricultural technology and science laboratory as well as campus drainage system.

"I would like to express my profound gratitude to the Chinese government for having always provided support to the development of Cambodia," he said in a speech at the event, with some 700 participants.

"Through this project, the University of Kratie will be able to provide high-quality education to students and talents in the northeastern region of Cambodia," he added.

Ngy Laymithuna, rector of the University of Kratie, said when completed, the dormitories will be able to accommodate 70 to 100 teachers and 250 to 300 students.

"These dorm buildings will be very useful for students and teachers from far-flung areas or rural areas to stay, and they will also contribute to reducing the dropout rate of students in rural areas," he said.

The construction will be entirely completed in the middle of 2025.

Zhong Jie, counselor of the Chinese embassy to Cambodia, was confident that this China-aided Phase 2 project will lay a solid economic foundation for the university to achieve greater development.

"It is hoped that in the future, the University of Kratie will attract more excellent teachers, cultivate more talents, help more young people obtain employment opportunities, and drive the economic and social development of Cambodia's northeastern region," she said.

Loem Somarima, a fresh-year student in the major of English literature at the University of Kratie, said the dorms will be very useful for students and teachers from remote areas, providing them convenience in studying and teaching.

"I feel excited to see the construction of the dorms because I live in a remote area, so the dorms will provide me convenience, making me easier to focus on study," she told Xinhua.

"My home is a bit far, taking me about an hour and a half to travel by motorcycle to school," she added.

Sem Pheareak, also a freshman in the major of animal and veterinary science at the university, said the dorms will reduce students' expense on the rent. "When the construction is completed, I will come to stay here because it will make me easy to study."

"I would like to thank China for having provided support to the University of Kratie as well as the construction of dorm buildings here," he added.

Situated in Kratie provincial town, the China-aided University of Kratie was officially launched in 2018.