Cambodia’s economy grew rapidly, at more than 8 percent per year, between 2004 and 2012. GDP growth slowed during the global economic downturn in 2008-09 and then picked up again to reach a four-year high of 7.3 percent in 2012. The economy is expected to grow at around 7 percent in 2013, driven by strong exports, private investment and agriculture, and underpinned by a solid macroeconomic position. Economic growth broadened over the past few years, thanks to sustained growth in the agricultural sector, driven by increases in rice prices in global markets.
Poverty in Cambodia has fallen sharply. World Bank estimates suggest that Cambodia achieved the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) of halving poverty in 2009. However, a vast majority of families who were lifted out of poverty were only able to do so by a small margin. Today, the poverty rate is 20.5 percent. Still about 2.8 million people are poor, and about 90 percent of them live in the countryside.
