Prime minister Hun Sen said Cambodia had been a heaven for non-government organisations (NGOs) for too long.

“They are out of control and insult the government just to ensure their financial survival,” he said.

Of the total around 3,500 registered organisations in Cambodia, according to the report ‘CSO Contribution to the Development of Cambodia released on April 4, 2012 by the Cooperation Committee for Cambodia. Is this number too many?

The number of NGOs in Cambodia does not raise a level yet when compared to that in India and United States—3.3 millions and 1.5 millions respectively, according to Wikipedia’s report, further revealing that United States and India—despite their developed country’s status—ratio of an NGO/person in United States and India is 50 and 25 times higher accordingly than that in Cambodia.

Number of NGOs in Cambodia, United States and India vs that per People in Cambodia, United and India