Cintri workers collect rubbish in Phnom Penh's Chroy Changvar district last year. Hong Menea
One Singaporean and one Chinese firm each won bids to collect and manage waste in two zones in Phnom Penh, while local firm Cintri (Cambodia) Co Ltd was selected to provide services in the central and southern parts of the capital.
A ceremony to inaugurate cooperation with the three companies is scheduled for February 5.
Municipal Hall spokesman Met Meas Pheakdey and managing director of city’s Waste Management and Environment Division Nuon Samnavuth told The Post on February 4 that the ceremony is organised to formally deliver contracts to the three waste collectors.
Pheakdey declined to reveal the names and other details of two new companies prior to the ceremony taking place but encouraged the public to attend.
In October 2019, Prime Minister Hun Sen revoked Cintri’s exclusive licence for the capital’s waste management and returned the responsibility to the municipal hall until a new company could be found to replace it. At the time, Cintri was not up to the task, he said.
Following the revocation, the capital was divided into three administrative zones for the purposes of waste collection, requiring three different firms handle the work.
According to the city hall, the first zone includes the districts of Tuol Kork, Russey Keo, Sen Sok, Chroy Changvar, and Prek Phnov. The second zone covers Dangkor, Por Sen Chey, Kambol, Daun Penh, and Prampi Makara districts, and the third includes Chamkarmon, Meanchey, Chbar Ampov, and Boeung Keng Kang districts.
Cintri director Seng Savy said on February 4 that his company had won the bidding to collect the waste in the four districts of the third zone.
“After we receive the rights to collect the waste, we will work according to the circumstances and terms of the contract. The firms from China and Singapore won the bidding for zones one and two, and we will handle ours,” Savy said.
He said Cintri would purchase more dump trucks and other necessary waste collection equipment to meet the logistical requirements of its responsibility.
Every day, more than 10,000 tonnes of waste is produced across the country, amounting to nearly four million tonnes per year. Organic waste is estimated to comprise 65 per cent of the total while plastics amount to 20 per cent.
Phnom Penh alone produces 3,000 tonnes of waste per day – around 30 per cent of the total, according to figures provided by the Ministry of Environment.
William Lee, general director of 800 Super Waste Management Pte Ltd which won the bid for zone one, explained that his company would subcontract with a local firm named GAEA Waste Management.
He promised his company would bring experience and skill to its task and promote the beautification of the city and improvement of living conditions in it.
800 Super is a waste collection firm which holds three licences in Singapore under the authority its National Environment Agency, while GAEA is a local waste collector with operations in Siem Reap, Kampong Thom, Banteay Meanchey and Kampot provinces.
San Chey, executive director the Affiliated Network for Social Accountability, claimed that Cintri had previously been fraught with labour disputes and shortfalls in service delivery because it had been granted exclusive rights.
He expected competition would improve services and hoped a new professional atmosphere would foster greater public cooperation.
“In addition to competitive waste collection services, we want to see better participation from our people, especially at sites where waste accumulates. The public can contribute by separating and packaging waste properly.
“Authorities should also take action against some businesses which dump their waste in a disorderly manner, such as throwing it in canals which congests drainage,” Chey said.
