Cambodia

Cambodia is a lower-middle-income country in Southeast Asia with a population of approximately 17.8 million (2025), a life expectancy of 71 years, a GDP of US$51.27 billion, and a GDP per capita of US$2,872.4. The country has experienced sustained economic growth of over 7% annually for more than two decades, transitioning from one of Asia’s poorest nations to a lower-middle-income economy, driven primarily by garment and footwear exports, tourism, and agriculture. Despite these gains, Cambodia’s civic space is currently rated “repressed” by the CIVICUS Monitor, with restrictive laws, arbitrary arrests, prolonged pretrial detention, suppression of peaceful protests, and limitations on freedom of association, expression, and political participation affecting civil society, journalists, trade unionists, and human rights defenders. These governance challenges continue to constrain civic engagement despite the country’s strong economic performance. Sources: CIVICUS Monitor, World Bank Data, Statistics of the World,