Most Cambodians consider themselves to be Khmers, descendants of the Angkor Empire that extended over much of Southeast Asia and reached its zenith between the 10th and 13th centuries. Attacks by the Thai and Cham (from present-day Vietnam) weakened the empire ushering in a long period of decline. The king placed the country under French protection in 1863. Cambodia became part of French Indochina in 1887.

Following Japanese occupation in World War II, Cambodia gained full independence from France in 1953. In April 1975, after a five-year struggle, Communist Khmer Rouge forces captured Phnom Penh and evacuated all cities and towns. At least 1.5 million Cambodians died from execution, forced hardships, or starvation during the Khmer Rouge regime under POL POT.

A December 1978 Vietnamese invasion drove the Khmer Rouge into the countryside, began a 10-year Vietnamese occupation, and touched off almost 13 years of civil war. The 1991 Paris Peace Accords mandated democratic elections and a ceasefire, which was not fully respected by the Khmer Rouge.

UN-sponsored elections in 1993 helped restore some semblance of normalcy under a coalition government. Factional fighting in 1997 ended the first coalition government, but a second round of national elections in 1998 led to the formation of another coalition government and renewed political stability.

The remaining elements of the Khmer Rouge surrendered in early 1999. Some of the remaining Khmer Rouge leaders are awaiting trial by a UN-sponsored tribunal for crimes against humanity. Elections in July 2003 were relatively peaceful, but it took one year of negotiations between contending political parties before a coalition government was formed.

Source: CIA World Fact Book

Population: 13,995,904 note: estimates for this country take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2007 est.)

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Age structure: 0-14 years: 34% (male 2,405,561/female 2,355,404) 15-64 years: 62.4% (male 4,234,701/female 4,500,994) 65 years and over: 3.6% (male 189,090/female 310,154) (2007 est.)

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Median age: total: 21.3 years male: 20.6 years female: 22.1 years (2007 est.)

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Population growth rate: 1.729% (2007 est.)

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Birth rate: 25.53 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)

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Death rate: 8.24 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)

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Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)

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Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.021 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.941 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.61 male(s)/female total population: 0.953 male(s)/female (2007 est.)

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Infant mortality rate: total: 58.45 deaths/1,000 live births male: 65.74 deaths/1,000 live births female: 50.84 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)

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Life expectancy at birth: total population: 61.29 years male: 59.27 years female: 63.4 years (2007 est.)

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Total fertility rate: 3.12 children born/woman (2007 est.)

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HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 2.6% (2003 est.)

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HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 170,000 (2003 est.)

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HIV/AIDS - deaths: 15,000 (2003 est.)

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Major infectious diseases: degree of risk: very high food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever vectorborne diseases: dengue fever, malaria, and Japanese encephalitis are high risks in some locations note: highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza has been identified among birds in this country or surrounding region; it poses a negligible risk with extremely rare cases possible among US citizens who have close contact with birds (2007)

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Nationality: noun: Cambodian(s) adjective: Cambodian

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Ethnic groups: Khmer 90%, Vietnamese 5%, Chinese 1%, other 4%

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Religions: Theravada Buddhist 95%, other 5%

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Languages: Khmer (official) 95%, French, English

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Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 73.6% male: 84.7% female: 64.1% (2004 est.)

In 1999, the first full year of peace in 30 years, the government made progress on economic reforms. The US and Cambodia signed a Bilateral Textile Agreement, which gave Cambodia a guaranteed quota of US textile imports and established a bonus for improving working conditions and enforcing Cambodian labor laws and international labor standards in the industry. From 2001 to 2004, the economy grew at an average rate of 6.4%, driven largely by an expansion in the garment sector and tourism. With the January 2005 expiration of a WTO Agreement on Textiles and Clothing, Cambodia-based textile producers were forced to compete directly with lower-priced producing countries such as China and India. Better-than-expected garment sector performance led to more than 13% growth in 2006. Faced with the possibility that its vibrant garment industry, with more than 200,000 jobs, could be in serious danger, the Cambodian government has committed itself to a policy of continued support for high labor standards in an attempt to maintain favor with buyers. The tourism industry continues to grow rapidly, with foreign visitors surpassing 1 million per year beginning in 2005. In 2005, exploitable oil and natural gas deposits were found beneath Cambodia's territorial waters, representing a new revenue stream for the government once commercial extraction begins in the coming years. Mining also is attracting significant investor interest, particularly in the northeastern parts of the country. The long-term development of the economy remains a daunting challenge. The Cambodian government is working with bilateral and multilateral donors, including the World Bank and IMF, to address the country's many pressing needs. The major economic challenge for Cambodia over the next decade will be fashioning an economic environment in which the private sector can create enough jobs to handle Cambodia's demographic imbalance. More than 50% of the population is less than 21 years old. The population lacks education and productive skills, particularly in the poverty-ridden countryside, which suffers from an almost total lack of basic infrastructure.

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GDP (purchasing power parity): $38.89 billion (2006 est.)

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GDP (official exchange rate): $6.6 billion (2006 est.)

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GDP - real growth rate: 10.5% (2006 est.)

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GDP - per capita (PPP): $2,800 (2006 est.)

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GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 35% industry: 30% services: 35% (2004)

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Labor force: 7 million (2003 est.)

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Labor force - by occupation: agriculture: 75% industry: NA% services: NA% (2004 est.)

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Unemployment rate: 2.5% (2000 est.)

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Population below poverty line: 40% (2004 est.)

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Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 2.9% highest 10%: 33.8% (1997)

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Distribution of family income - Gini index: 40 (2004 est.)

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Inflation rate (consumer prices): 5% (2006 est.)

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Investment (gross fixed): 18.7% of GDP (2006 est.)

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Budget: revenues: $731 million expenditures: $931.8 million; including capital expenditures of $291 million (2006 est.)

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Agriculture - products: rice, rubber, corn, vegetables, cashews, tapioca

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Industries: tourism, garments, rice milling, fishing, wood and wood products, rubber, cement, gem mining, textiles

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Industrial production growth rate: 22% (2002 est.)

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Electricity - production: 131 million kWh (2004)

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Electricity - consumption: 121.8 million kWh (2004)

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Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2004)

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Electricity - imports: 100 million kWh (2005)

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Oil - production: 0 bbl/day (2004)

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Oil - consumption: 3,750 bbl/day (2004 est.)

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Oil - exports: NA bbl/day

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Oil - imports: NA bbl/day

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Oil - proved reserves: 0 bbl

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Natural gas - production: 0 cu m (2004 est.)

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Natural gas - consumption: 0 cu m (2004 est.)

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Current account balance: -$369 million (2006 est.)

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Exports: $3.38 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)

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Exports - commodities: clothing, timber, rubber, rice, fish, tobacco, footwear

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Exports - partners: US 62.8%, Germany 10%, UK 4.6% (2006)

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Imports: $4.446 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)

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Imports - commodities: petroleum products, cigarettes, gold, construction materials, machinery, motor vehicles, pharmaceutical products

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Imports - partners: Thailand 29.8%, China 16.6%, Hong Kong 13.3%, Singapore 11% (2006)

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Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $1.385 billion (2006 est.)

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Debt - external: $3.664 billion (2006 est.)

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Economic aid - recipient: $504 million pledged in grants and concession loans for 2005 by international donors

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Currency (code): riel (KHR)

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Exchange rates: riels per US dollar - 4,103 (2006), 4,092.5 (2005), 4,016.25 (2004), 3,973.33 (2003), 3,912.08 (2002)

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Fiscal year: calendar year