Lieutenant General Hun Manet, the Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces and the commander of the army’s infantry, urged property and construction developers to focus on safety and risk management to gain the trust of buyers and investors.

Speaking at the groundbreaking ceremony of Urban Village Condominium Phase II on Wednesday, Manet, who is also the eldest son of Prime Minister Hun Sen, said the success of Phase I is reflected in the customers’ confidence in its quality, safety and good design, which highlight the developer’s efforts.

“I encourage all project developers to focus mainly on quality, safety and risk management to avoid the risk of an accident.

“Development of the construction sector contributes to Phnom Penh’s urban development goals and the country’s economy in the long run,” he said.

Ben Li, the executive director of Urban Hub (Cambodia) Co Ltd, the project’s management arm, said his company complies with safety standards and mixes architectural elements, which contribute towards their renowned designs.

These were essential in gaining public trust, which led to the success of Urban Village Phase I.

“Phase I was sold out as people have faith in our project,” Li said, adding that occupancy is currently around 40 per cent.

“Some 70 per cent of our customers are locals, though our condominium clientele is quite diverse. Our slogan is ‘Affordable Luxury’,” he said.

Li said the 51-storey Urban Village Phase II will be built on 760,000sqm and comprise 1,700 units. Construction is set to be completed by the end of 2022.

His target customers are people from Japan, Hong Kong, Europe, and the US, but most importantly – locals, he said.

Manet said there has been remarkable growth in the number of both local and foreign investors in the construction sector over the last few years and he hopes it will continue this year.

“Cambodia is among the main regional destinations for the construction of properties due to economic growth, a rise in the people’s income, political stability and proper regulation to manage the sector.

“Investment in the construction and property sector over the last 10 years has proven business to be very profitable, and this is just a start,” he said.

The Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction last year granted permission for 4,446 construction projects, worth some $9.353 billion, on a total area of 18.54 million square metres, it said in a report.

In 2018, there were 2,867 construction projects on 11.42 million square metres, worth around $5.228 billion, it said. Construction investment capital last year increased by 78.88 per cent over 2018.