Building Futures

I love street art, especially when it transforms public spaces like this beautiful Cambodian woman who showed up overnight on the temporary boundary wall built around a construction site in my neighbourhood of Tonle Bassac.

Phnom Penh is a city under siege by construction that's being carried out at an accelerated rate. I wake up at dawn on most days to the sound of birds. Starting from 7am, they are drowned out by the drills, jackhammers and earthmoving equipment which I have come to regard as the soundtrack of this city.

Cambodia is ready to be seen in the wider world for more than the Pol Pot regime and is open to investors and not only the flocks of international NGOs based here which number in the thousands. Closer to home, Cambodia wants to play a bigger role in the ASEAN group of countries.

New buildings pop up within weeks and towers within months. The cityscape is dramatically changing and 'development' is hurtling along unchecked by a longer term vision or much (apparent) urban planning.

The property developers are mostly from the richer, more industrialised neighboring countries of Viet Nam, China and Malaysia. The cost of renting an office or apartment in these shiny new structures is high and excludes most average people.

Business entrepreneurs from around the world flourish in Phnom Penh as they launch proven global fads to the cashed up minority. Hipster bars and restaurants abound and choices go across the spectrum of international cuisines and trends. You can have your kale smoothie in a jam jar or an espresso martini made with single origin, ethically sourced coffee beans which costs more than the person serving it earns for a whole day's work.

Two parallel economies exist. One for the many 'everyday locals' and the other for the wealthy Cambodians and foreigners who can replicate their comfortable lifestyles here, right down to finding their favourite granola cereal at one of the international supermarkets. Local staples include fried noodles or bbq pork & rice from a street stand for 50 cents while others who can and are inclined to, fork out much more to dine at an authentic Persian restaurant or sushi bar or eat squid ink pasta made by an Italian chef from Turin who's able to fly in all the ingredients from his home town to make his authentic recipe.

It's a charming and confronting city all in one, offering up stark contrasts with little pause in between. In parts, it resembles many other places in the world where wealth and opportunities are on the rise but they remain concentrated and mostly for the elite and don't trickle down to the regular folks.

In recent years, there has been a marked improvement in GDP per capita in Cambodia to $1020 USD p.a.

... that still doesn't cover the basic cost of living in Phnom Penh.