UNESCO alarmed by Nagakov plan near Angkor Wat

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has voiced concern over casino investor Naga Corp Ltd's proposal to build a $350 million non-gaming resort near Encore Wat, a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Siem Reap, Cambodia.

The Hong Kong-listed company operates the Nagaworld casino complex in Cambodia's capital Phnom Penh. It has an exclusive license to operate casinos there and around the city.

"We are closely following plans for 75 hectares of amusement parks under discussion near Cambodia's World Heritage Site Angkor," UNESCO said in a statement on Wednesday.

In November, Nagakov said it had been granted a 50-year lease about 500 metres south of Angkor Wat's development restricted zone.

The casino company said construction of the resort, temporarily called "Weird Angkor Lake," would be phased in, with the first expected to open in 2025. It said the plan includes hotels, water theme parks, indoor high-tech theme parks, water cruise attractions, space for meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions (MICE), cultural attractions, and food streets.

Nagakov told GGRAsia in September that any venture entering the Siem Reap resort market would respect the Cambodian government's gaming-related policies.

In a statement, UNESCO said Nagakov's project in Siem Reap was the focus of discussions at a late January meeting of the International Committee for the Coordination of Angkors (ICC-Angkor), a multinational body overseeing the preservation and development of Angkor.

"Technical opinions of experts in conservation and sustainable development have clearly been at a disadvantage," the U.N. agency said of the project near Nagakov's heritage site.

"UNESCO World Heritage Center has also received numerous appeals from third parties expressing concern," it added.

UNESCO said the proximity of Nagakov's project to the protected buffer zone of the Angkor Wat site "can actually affect Angkor's outstanding universal values listed on UNESCO's World Heritage List, as well as the scale, scope and concept of planned activities."

"UNESCO is fully committed to the implementation of the World Heritage Convention by Cambodian authorities and is confident that the protection of Angkor's outstanding universal values will remain at the heart of the decision-making process related to property and the surrounding environment."

The organization also said any developments related to the Angkor site will be investigated by the World Heritage Committee in mid-2021.
 

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