Community Protected Areas in Cambodia

The report identifies land tenure insecurity, administrative complexity in establishment, and limited commercial rights as primary obstacles for Community Protected Areas (CPAs) in Cambodia. It argues that the current 15-year tenure is insufficient for long-term conservation and livelihood development, and highlights a jurisdictional conflict between the Ministry of Environment and the Forestry Administration regarding non-timber forest product permits. Recommendations include expanding exclusion rights, lengthening tenure to 30 years, simplifying management plans, and formalising the conversion process between Community Forests and CPAs.

• Land tenure insecurity is the primary challenge for CPA communities, who possess access, use, extraction, and management rights but lack 'exclusion rights (ability to exclude outsiders from entering or using CPA land)'. This deficiency impairs long-term planning and conservation decision-making.
• The current 15-year tenure period for CPAs is considered inadequate for sustainable economic activities and effective long-term management. The report suggests that 'community-based management agreements for at least 30 years are deemed to be more effective'.
• The process for establishing a CPA is administratively complex and heavily reliant on government and NGO support. It can take 'an estimated six (6) to seven (7) years to develop and reach agreement on a CPA management agreement', which undermines the ability of communities to protect threatened areas.
• A jurisdictional conflict exists between the Ministry of Environment (MoE) and the Forestry Administration (FA) under the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF). While the MoE manages PAs, the Law on Forestry still requires commercial non-timber forest product (NTFP) harvesting permits from the FA, creating a 'confusing and fundamentally unworkable situation'.
• CPA management plans are often too complex for communities to handle independently and are frequently delayed, sometimes taking 6-7 years after establishment to be approved. The report recommends simplifying these requirements to be 'adaptive to the size of a CPA, the capacity of the community, and the type and complexity of proposed activities'.
• Internal governance of CPAs is often male-dominated, and the representation of women, youth, and the poor is limited. The report notes that 'reduced representation on the CPA committee often results in these vulnerable groups’ needs being subordinated'.
• Enforcement of CPA rules is weak because communities are generally restricted to reporting crimes and lack the authority to take direct action. This is exacerbated by a lack of 'dissuasive penalties' and reports of illegal loggers making 'informal payments to officials to secure release without trial'.
• CPA communities are at a disadvantage in land disputes because they hold contractual agreements rather than land titles, making them more likely to lose land to commercial companies. The report suggests registering CPAs in a 'centralised registration system, such as the Land Register', to reduce overlapping claims.

APA

Sath, K., Rohan, B., Kwon, Y., Horenblas, I., & Wang, Y. (2022). Community Protected Areas in Cambodia. ClientEarth. https://www.clientearth.org/media/cbzoeazp/clientearth_cpa-report-cambodia_en.pdf

Chicago

Sath, Kanyara, Brian Rohan, Yena Kwon, Isaac Horenblas, and Yao Wang. Community Protected Areas in Cambodia. ClientEarth, 2022. https://www.clientearth.org/media/cbzoeazp/clientearth_cpa-report-cambodia_en.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Sath |first1=Kanyara |last2=Rohan |first2=Brian |last3=Kwon |first3=Yena |last4=Horenblas |first4=Isaac |last5=Wang |first5=Yao |title=Community Protected Areas in Cambodia |publisher=ClientEarth |date=April 2022 |url=https://www.clientearth.org/media/cbzoeazp/clientearth_cpa-report-cambodia_en.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{sath2022community, author = {Sath, Kanyara and Rohan, Brian and Kwon, Yena and Horenblas, Isaac and Wang, Yao}, title = {{Community Protected Areas in Cambodia}}, institution = {ClientEarth}, year = {2022}, month = apr, url = {https://www.clientearth.org/media/cbzoeazp/clientearth_cpa-report-cambodia_en.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }