Cambodia Expats Online: Forum | News | Information | Blog

Cambodians young and old. SEA Globe

Paul Millar
December 4, 2019

In 20 years time, Cambodia will be as unrecognisable to us as our present would have been to our parents

The year is 2040, and Cambodia is flourishing. From the classroom to the courtroom, from factories to farms, evolving technology has revolutionised the way Cambodians live, eat, work and learn. But tech alone is not enough to bring about a better tomorrow; if Cambodia is to thrive in a fast-changing world, it needs a public who can participate fully in shaping the discussion of how the Kingdom can embrace the full potential of its people.

This is just a glimpse of the shining future imagined for the Kingdom in Cambodia-based think tank Future Forum’s Cambodia 2040 project, a series of essays breaking down the public policy challenges facing the nation – and how Cambodia can chart its own course through the 21st century to a future free from want and desperation.

Faced with a China intent on rebuilding ancient trade routes across Asia and the Near East, Cambodia may seem well-placed to benefit hugely from levels of foreign trade and investment that show little sign of slowing. Despite this, rising fears of a nation reliant wholly on the whims and wellbeing of another may force Cambodia to redefine just how it sees its role in a multi-polar world, as well as what kind of alliances must be forged to ensure it is free to chart its own course in an ever-more-hostile global order.

Today, Cambodia’s judicial system has done little to earn admiration within or without its borders. But beyond the whitewashed courtroom walls, rival traditions of community-based justice and conflict resolution have taken root in places the long arm of Cambodian law cannot – or will not – reach.

We want a different life for our children, one where they are able define the work that they do, and the way that they do it. One where the ongoing march of automation and artificial intelligence doesn’t make working men and women obsolete, but grants them the freedom to match their labour to their love.

full https://southeastasiaglobe.com/cambodia-in-two-decades/

SternAAlbifrons wrote: ↑Thu Dec 05, 2019 5:08 am

I dont think too good. it may look a bit like angkor wat. the river will be dry several months a year, phnom penh abandoned and south vietnam will be under water. living like refugees is my guess

fsdfdsdf wrote: ↑Thu Dec 05, 2019 2:54 pm I dont think too good. it may look a bit like angkor wat. the river will be dry several months a year, phnom penh abandoned and south vietnam will be under water. living like refugees is my guess

Could become like another Chinese province

The world is entering a recession while the usual tools of central banks to fight it are already exhausted by the previous recession. Expect at least one lost decade of economic growth on a worldwide scale. Private investments scale down in this scary environment, people try to save not spend; instead central banks launch massive quantitative easing campaigns to fill the void aka money printing resulting in double digit inflation. Doom and gloomish? Yes. But it happened many times before and there was a narrow escape in 2009.

Asian countries will have to develop domestic markets more, rely less on the West’s purchasing power. They will need to establish an asian reserve currency too for trading between themselves as the inflow of weakened western currencies dwindles. Interesting times ahead.

hunter8 wrote: ↑Thu Dec 05, 2019 5:06 pm The world is entering a recession while the usual tools of central banks to fight it are already exhausted by the previous recession. Expect at least one lost decade of economic growth on a worldwide scale. Private investments scale down in this scary environment, people try to save not spend; instead central banks launch massive quantitative easing campaigns to fill the void aka money printing resulting in double digit inflation. Doom and gloomish? Yes. But it happened many times before and there was a narrow escape in 2009.

Asian countries will have to develop domestic markets more, rely less on the West’s purchasing power. They will need to establish an asian reserve currency too for trading between themselves as the inflow of weakened western currencies dwindles. Interesting times ahead.

Yuh, and in respect to KOW seems to me it's fortunes are very much tied to China. If a bubble doesn't burst there then OK...otherwise?

It is fairly easy to guess what Cambodia will look like in 20 years. Just look at where the major investors are today. Consider what Thailand and China look like, and you can get a pretty clear picture of what Cambodia will look like after those investors get the chance to remake it in their image.

I first came to Cambodia in 1999. My thoughts were that it looked much like Thailand in the 70's. Phnom Penh today looks very much like Bangkok did in the late 90's. 20 years from now I expect the same pattern. Look at Bangkok today. That will give a pretty good guide to Phnom Penh in 20 years. But sadly, likely still without decent medical care (except for the very wealthy). The Thai medical system required a long term vision that nobody in Cambodia seems to have.

As for this quote:

"We want a different life for our children... One where the ongoing march of automation and artificial intelligence doesn’t make working men and women obsolete"

Good luck with that. Sounds like a nice dream. Never going to happen. Besides, the Khmer Rouge already tried an agrarian, working man's paradise.

I distinctly said better to return in 20 years time to visit Cambodia once Snooki and the rest has been finished.

Then I realized the stupidity in such an idea.