Local authorities from southern Soc Trang province have held a celebration to mark the upcoming Chol Chnam Thmay, the traditional New Year festival of the ethnic minority group, which falls between April 13-15.

The province has made active efforts to raise the Khmer living standards such as providing greater resources for production, and building homes for disadvantaged families and schools and other infrastructure in rural areas. The combined cost of the programmes amounted to over US$9.3 million, and directly assisted more than 3,500 Khmer families to escape from poverty.

The Khmer community in Soc Trang province represents 28 percent of the province’s total population of about 1.2 million.