[October 16, 2025] Seoul Halts Cambodia 'Pedestrian-Friendly Street' ODA Project... Ends After Master Plan Only [Cambodia Korean Kidnapping Incident]
[Image: 'Cambodia ODA Site Tour' event conducted by the National Heritage Promotion Agency (Provided by National Heritage Promotion Agency)]
Seoul City conducted ODA (Official Development Assistance) for creating a 'pedestrian-friendly street' in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, but concluded the project at the basic master plan stage, it was confirmed on the 16th.
According to Herald Economy's investigation, Seoul City decided against additional support following ODA discussions in August with KOICA (Korea International Cooperation Agency) regarding the 'Cambodia Phnom Penh Preah Ang Eng Pedestrian-Friendly Street Master Plan (Basic Plan)'.
A Seoul City official told Herald Economy that day, "Considering the Thailand-Cambodia border dispute and Cambodia's domestic political situation, we decided not to proceed with additional projects." The official added, "We conveyed to Phnom Penh that Phnom Penh's budget should come first for pedestrian-friendly street development. After communicating that they need to issue bonds first, and hearing that was difficult, we discussed additional support with KOICA."
Korea's ODA budget for Cambodia has more than doubled since President Yoon Suk-yeol took office. According to data submitted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Economy and Finance to the National Assembly, Cambodia ODA support budget increased yearly: 178.9 billion KRW in 2022, 180.5 billion KRW in 2023, 217.8 billion KRW in 2024. This year's support scale surged 99.8% to 435.3 billion KRW compared to last year—the largest increase among Korea's 27 priority ODA cooperation countries.
Seoul's Phnom Penh Preah Ang Eng Pedestrian-Friendly Street Master Plan project aims to transform the approximately 1.3 km stretch from Wat Phnom Temple to the Royal Palace into a pedestrian-friendly street like Hongdae Street. This is part of Seoul's open-call 'ODA Challenge' projects. Seoul also selected Peru's Lima (urban transportation) and Sri Lanka's Colombo (waste management) as priority negotiation targets.
Through the service task order, Seoul explained, "Despite Phnom Penh authorities' will, there are no incentives or operational strategies to encourage citizen compliance," adding, "Phnom Penh hopes to gain experience from Seoul's 'Car-Free Street' initiative to effectively implement policies enhancing safe and convenient pedestrian environments in the city center and boosting urban attractiveness."
Seoul conducted the 'Cambodia Phnom Penh Preah Ang Eng Pedestrian-Friendly Street Master Plan (Basic Plan)' service from November last year to August this year, developing a concept plan and execution plan for the Preah Ang Eng street. The basic plan service cost 294 million KRW from Seoul's budget. It also derived a total budget of 1.5 billion KRW needed for development. Seoul envisioned advancing beyond the basic plan to pilot projects and supporting Korean company entry.
Regarding recent Korean kidnapping incidents in Cambodia, the Seoul official said, "We didn't hear about that situation during discussions with KOICA." According to Ministry of Foreign Affairs data revealed by Democratic Party Rep. Park Chan-dae at the National Assembly Political Affairs Committee audit on the 13th, Cambodia kidnapping and confinement reports rose from 4 cases in 2021 to 220 last year, surging to 330 by end of August this year.
Media Outlet: Herald Economy (https://biz.heraldcorp.com/article/10594836)
Reporter: Park Byung-guk
