page_title: Khemarak Phoumin
section_title: Frontier town
hierarchical_section_title: Khemarak Phoumin / Frontier town
caption_attribution_description: Cambodian fishing boats in the Gulf of Thailand
context_page_description: Krong Khemarak Phoumin is the capital and largest city of Koh Kong Province in Cambodia. It is near the mouth of the Kah Bpow river in Smach Mean Chey District on the Gulf of Thailand. The city lies only 10 kilometres from the Thai border. It is 138 kilometres by Highway 48 to National Highway 4 at Sre Ambel and a further 133 kilometres to Phnom Penh. After completion of the bridges on Highway 48 in 2010 the land link to Phnom Penh and Sihanoukville has significantly improved.
context_section_description: Koh Kong has long had a reputation as a "wild west" frontier town. Until recently, access to the town from Cambodia was mostly by sea or air due to the poor road conditions. In this relative isolation, illegal logging, wild animal smuggling, banditry, gambling, prostitution, and a soaring rate of HIV AIDS infection have given Koh Kong its frontier town reputation. However, with the building of the Thai-Cambodian bridge across the river and the upgrading of the road to the national highway, industry and investment have increased and the town is becoming a modest tourist destination.
caption: Cambodian fishing boats, Gulf of Thailand
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