Industrial park life brings a better tomorrow

"Cambodia is one of the main transport hubs in Southeast Asia and is an important country along the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road," Zhou said, referring to the Belt and Road Initiative, a development strategy proposed by China in 2013.

"The establishment of the SSEZ will further enhance the ties between the two countries and promote cooperation in business and technology."

The Sihanoukville industrial complex has become a cornerstone of the economic partnership between Cambodia and China. In 2008, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen attended the groundbreaking ceremony at the SSEZ. He expressed his hopes that it would become the country's version of Shenzhen, China's manufacturing powerhouse.

"When the SSEZ was set up, we introduced China's 'One-station Service'," Song said. "This involved all government departments in the project opening up offices in the zone to provide better services to the investors."

Chinese companies there enjoy quota and custom duty exemptions as well as easy transport links to the deepwater port. But getting the development off the ground was far from easy.

"The zone's land belonged to more than 300 land owners," Dai Yue'e, general manager of the SSEZ, said. "We needed to negotiate with each of them.

"We had to measure their land inch by inch because many local people didn't believe in advanced measurement equipment."

As manufacturing grows in Cambodia, more companies are setting up businesses in the SSEZ. "Companies from Japan, France and the US have settled here," Dai said. "With its advantages in taxation, labor costs and transport, more firms will be joining them."

Based in the Yangtze River Delta, the Ounoya Clear Water Leather Supply Co Ltd opened operations in the economic zone in 2011.

The major leather manufacturer has benefitted from low production costs and preferential financial policies, reporting annual exports of $200 million last year.

"Cambodia has a population of 14 million with 62 percent of working age," Wu Kun, general manager of Ounoya Clear Water Leather Supply, said. "Our workers receive a monthly salary of $180 to $220. According to local laws, the lowest salary is $128, so we are paying more than that."

Training is also a priority and more than 14,000 workers have taken part in international trade and business management programs, general manger Dai said.

"I spent two years training in China learning Mandarin," Lok Vannara, who works as an interpreter in human resources, said. "This job has changed my life."