A New Model The Chinese-invested Sihanoukville Special Economic Zone has become the benchmark for cooperative economic zones in Global South countries

The Sihanoukville Special Economic Zone(SSEZ)is the only national-level special economic zone under an agreement between the Chinese and Cambodian governments.It was established in 2008,and the then Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen attended the ground-breaking ceremony.From January to September 2024,the volume of trade in goods by enterprises in the zone reached US$3.06 billion,up 22.06 percent year on year,accounting for 7.13 percent of Cambodia’s total volume of imports and exports.The SSEZ’s contribution to the local economy has risen to a new record high.Its success has created a new model for cooperative economic zones in the Global South.