The Funan Techo Canal project is scheduled to start construction this year. This is according to the Ministry of Public Works and Transport on January 17, 2024. His Excellency Peng Pornea, Minister of Public Works and Transport, stated, "Our massive canal project, the Funan Techo Canal project, is scheduled to open construction in the fourth quarter of 2024."Studies have shown that it is 180 km long from the Takeo canal of the Mekong River, through the Ta Ek canal of the Bassac River, into the Ta Hing canal of the Bassac River, Koh Thom district, and continues all the way to the sea of Kep province, passing through four provinces, including Kandal, Takeo, Kampot and Kep, with a total population of 1.6 million people living on both sides of the canal. The Funan Techo Canal project is considered to be Cambodia's economic pillar. After the completion of this project, Cambodia can benefit greatly by reducing the time and the cost of transportation, independent of the ports of Vietnam and Thailand, the development of many new satellite ports, the expansion of agricultural development zones, irrigation, aquaculture, and animal husbandry, supporting the development of Cambodia's Fourth Economic Pole, promoting urban development and urbanization, and promoting real estate growth.