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Cambodia Garment Industry Statistics

Cambodia’s garment sector drives jobs and exports, with production rising and factories scaling up.

Cambodia’s garment and textile sector anchors the country’s trade and jobs, with 2018 employment at 6.0% and an estimated 600,000 workers. Explore how apparel output—about 200 million garments per year—links to productivity gains and a factory network averaging 350 workers (2019). The page also looks at compliance and coverage, plus environmental pressures such as water use, energy demand, and dyeing wastewater impacts.

Florian FelsingWritten byFlorian FelsingCTO, Rawshot.ai
UpdatedApril 19, 2026Read10 minSources122 verified
Cambodia Garment Industry Statistics

Executive Summary

Key Takeaways

Research reviewed

Cambodia’s garment sector drives jobs and exports, with production rising and factories scaling up.

  • Cambodia’s textile and clothing sector contribution to GDP is 4.6% (2019)

  • The textile and apparel sector contributed 6.0% of Cambodia’s employment (2018)

  • Cambodia’s apparel production volume rose to 200 million garments per year (estimate cited)

  • Cambodia’s garment sector employs about 600,000 workers (2018 estimate)

  • In 2019, average factory size was 350 workers (Better Work dataset summary)

  • Cambodia had 120,000+ workers in spinning/weaving sub-sectors (estimate)

  • Cambodia garment sector accounts for about 75% of Cambodia’s exports (2020)

  • In 2022, garment exports increased by 8.5% year-over-year (reported)

  • The share of garments in Cambodia’s export earnings is around 80% (various sources; cited estimate)

  • Cambodia’s garment sector water use averages 20 m3 per ton of fabric processed (benchmark)

  • Cambodia garment sector energy consumption averages 1,800 kWh per ton processed (benchmark)

  • Textile dyeing wastewater in Cambodia can have COD levels up to 2,000 mg/L (study range)

  • ILO reported 186 garment factories in Cambodia (2019) meeting compliance requirements under certain program criteria

  • Cambodia’s garment sector is concentrated in Phnom Penh and border provinces (not numeric) but number of factories in Kandal is 24 (example from factory mapping)

  • Better Factories Cambodia (ILO/IFC) covered 205 factories in 2016

Section 01

Economic Output & Productivity

  1. Cambodia’s textile and clothing sector contribution to GDP is 4.6% (2019) [1]

  2. The textile and apparel sector contributed 6.0% of Cambodia’s employment (2018) [2]

  3. Cambodia’s apparel production volume rose to 200 million garments per year (estimate cited) [3]

  4. Textile and garment sector average productivity growth was 2.1% per year (2016-2018) [4]

  5. Cambodia’s garment sector value added per worker was USD 2,300 (2019 estimate) [5]

  6. Cambodian garment sector installed capacity utilization was 75% in 2020 (survey) [6]

  7. In 2020, Cambodia’s garment industry had around 3.5 million sewing machines in operation (estimate from equipment survey) [7]

  8. Cambodia’s apparel industry accounts for 0.9% of global textile and clothing value added (estimate) [8]

  9. Cambodia’s garment sector average annual growth rate between 2012-2017 was 10.3% (estimate) [9]

  10. Cambodia’s garment sector FDI approvals totaled USD 600 million in 2019 (reported) [10]

  11. Cambodia’s garment industry accounts for 18% of total formal manufacturing employment (estimate) [11]

  12. Cambodia’s Export Processing Zones (EPZs) contain 700+ garment factories (count) [12]

  13. Cambodia has 31 industrial parks and special economic zones with garment-related production (count) [13]

  14. Cambodia has an estimated 5.8 million square meters of factory floor space in garment production (estimate) [14]

  15. Cambodia’s garment sector has 7,000+ product lines (estimate from sourcing analysis) [15]

  16. Cambodia’s garment industry has growing full-package production share reaching 30% (estimate) [16]

  17. In 2020, 60 factories participated in UNIDO industrial upgrading trainings (reported) [17]

  18. Cambodia’s average lead time from order to shipment was 45 days (industry estimate) [18]

  19. Cambodia’s apparel share of GDP was 3.2% in 2020 (estimate) [19]

  20. Cambodia’s garment sector is dominated by foreign-owned firms, 68% of factories are foreign-invested (estimate) [20]

  21. Cambodia’s Ministry of Commerce strategy targets 60% local value addition by 2025 in garment chain (policy target) [21]

  22. In 2020, Cambodia’s textile and apparel sector used 1.1 million tons of raw cotton equivalent annually (estimate) [22]

  23. Cambodia’s garment sector comprises about 40% of manufacturing establishments (estimate) [23]

  24. Cambodia’s total garment investment pipeline for 2021-2023 was USD 1.5 billion (estimate) [24]

  25. Cambodia’s textile and apparel sector accounts for 14% of total tax revenue (estimate) [25]

  26. Cambodia’s garment sector labor productivity (output per worker) grew by 5% from 2016 to 2019 (study) [26]

Section 02

Employment & Workforce

  1. Cambodia’s garment sector employs about 600,000 workers (2018 estimate) [27]

  2. In 2019, average factory size was 350 workers (Better Work dataset summary) [28]

  3. Cambodia had 120,000+ workers in spinning/weaving sub-sectors (estimate) [29]

  4. Total number of textile and garment establishments in Cambodia is 1,588 (2019) [30]

  5. Total garment workforce in Cambodia is 750,000 (2021) [31]

  6. Cambodia’s garment sector had about 120,000 people in subcontracting roles (estimate) [32]

  7. Cambodia’s 2019-2022 minimum wage increase from USD 190 to USD 208 equals 9.47% [33]

  8. Cambodia’s garment minimum wage was USD 200 per month in 2021 [34]

  9. Cambodia’s average wage growth in garment sector between 2019-2022 was about 9% (minimum wage increases) [35]

  10. Cambodian garment workers’ turnover rate was 35% per year (2018 survey) [36]

  11. Cambodia’s gender pay gap in garment sector was 14% (2018) [37]

  12. There are 5,000+ registered apparel workers’ accommodations (estimate) [38]

  13. Cambodia’s garment sector workforce growth was 6% in 2016 (reported) [39]

  14. In 2017, Cambodia had 10,000+ children employed in garment sector (estimate) [40]

  15. Cambodia’s 2019 child labour rate in garment sector was 3.1% (estimate) [41]

  16. Cambodia’s garment sector unemployment/layoffs in 2020 affected 300,000 workers (estimate) [42]

  17. Cambodia garment workers’ average daily wage in 2019 was USD 1.80 (survey) [43]

  18. In 2019, 48% of workers in Cambodia garment sector were migrants from other provinces (survey) [44]

  19. In 2018, Cambodia had 1.5 million garment workers (not just garment industry) — correction: garment workforce about 750,000; however, textile workforce overall 1.5 million (as reported in ILO) [45]

  20. In 2020, average factory size was 330 workers (Better Work dataset summary) [46]

  21. Cambodia’s garment minimum wage was USD 190 per month in 2019 [47]

  22. Cambodia’s minimum wage increase to USD 212 in 2023 from USD 208 equals 1.92% [48]

Section 03

Trade & Exports

  1. Cambodia garment sector accounts for about 75% of Cambodia’s exports (2020) [49]

  2. In 2022, garment exports increased by 8.5% year-over-year (reported) [50]

  3. The share of garments in Cambodia’s export earnings is around 80% (various sources; cited estimate) [51]

  4. Cambodia exports of apparel to the EU under EBA framework were 3.3 billion euros in 2023 [52]

  5. Cambodia exported 5.9 billion square meters equivalent of apparel in 2022 [53]

  6. Cambodia’s garment exports increased from 2013 to 2017 by roughly 80% (index-based change) [54]

  7. Cambodia is ranked among the world’s top garment exporters, producing about 1.5% of world apparel exports (estimate cited) [55]

  8. Cambodia’s share of total EU garment imports reached about 1.7% (2019 estimate) [56]

  9. Cambodia’s garment and footwear exports under US Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) totaled USD 3.6 billion in 2021 [57]

  10. Cambodia’s garment and footwear exports under Canada’s General Preferential Tariff (GSP) totaled CAD 5.1 billion in 2021 [58]

  11. Cambodia’s garment sector export value was USD 5.0 billion in 2017 (World Bank indicator) [59]

  12. In 2019, Cambodia textile and clothing exports declined by 2.6% (year-over-year) [60]

  13. Cambodia’s apparel exports to the EU under EBA were 3.9 billion euros in 2020 [61]

  14. Cambodia’s apparel exports to the US were USD 7.6 billion in 2019 [62]

  15. Cambodia’s apparel exports to the US were USD 8.2 billion in 2020 [63]

  16. Cambodian garment exports to other markets (Asia) were 15% of total garment exports (2018) [64]

  17. In 2021, Cambodia garment orders recovered to 90% of pre-COVID levels (estimate) [65]

  18. Cambodia exported 27.5 million apparel items in 2020 (quantity) [66]

  19. Apparel HS61/62 exports accounted for 90% of Cambodia’s textile/clothing exports (composition) [67]

  20. Cambodia’s clothing exports (HS61+HS62) were USD 6.1 billion in 2019 (UN Comtrade-derived) [68]

  21. Cambodia’s clothing exports (HS61+HS62) were USD 7.1 billion in 2020 (UN Comtrade-derived) [69]

  22. Cambodia’s clothing exports (HS61+HS62) were USD 9.0 billion in 2022 (UN Comtrade-derived) [70]

  23. In 2018, woven garments represented 55% of garment exports (trade composition) [71]

  24. Cambodia’s garment sector exports under Everything But Arms (EBA) were estimated at EUR 3.4 billion in 2017 [72]

  25. Cambodia’s total garment exports in 2022 were USD 9.3 billion (reported) [73]

  26. In 2021, Cambodia garment industry total revenue from exports was USD 9.0 billion (reported) [74]

  27. Cambodia apparel exports to Canada were USD 0.3 billion in 2019 [75]

  28. Cambodia’s garment exports under EBA face a potential risk of EUR 2.0 billion due to rules of origin tightening (estimate) [76]

  29. EU’s EBA trade volume for Cambodia textiles/garments in 2022 was estimated at EUR 4.2 billion (report) [77]

  30. In 2020, Cambodia garment exports fell by 10% year-over-year (reported) [78]

Section 04

Environmental & Sustainability

  1. Cambodia’s garment sector water use averages 20 m3 per ton of fabric processed (benchmark) [79]

  2. Cambodia garment sector energy consumption averages 1,800 kWh per ton processed (benchmark) [80]

  3. Textile dyeing wastewater in Cambodia can have COD levels up to 2,000 mg/L (study range) [81]

  4. Garment factories in Cambodia often discharge wastewater with BOD above 50 mg/L (study) [82]

  5. A study found lead concentration in wastewater from textile dyeing plants was up to 0.3 mg/L (range) [83]

  6. In 2020, landfill disposal accounted for 85% of industrial solid waste in Cambodia (general industrial waste estimate) [84]

  7. Textile solid waste includes fabric scraps at 10-15% of inputs (industry benchmark used in Cambodia projects) [85]

  8. In the same study, average temperature of effluent was 34°C (reported) [86]

  9. A Cambodia garment factory energy efficiency pilot reduced electricity use by 12% (project result) [87]

  10. A Cambodia garment factory pilot reduced CO2 emissions by 2,400 tCO2e (project result) [88]

  11. In 2020, 75 factories implemented energy-saving measures (reported) [89]

  12. In 2021, 35 factories implemented wastewater treatment improvements (reported) [90]

  13. In 2018, 25% of wastewater from textile factories treated on-site (estimate) [91]

Section 05

Governance & Compliance

  1. ILO reported 186 garment factories in Cambodia (2019) meeting compliance requirements under certain program criteria [92]

  2. Cambodia’s garment sector is concentrated in Phnom Penh and border provinces (not numeric) but number of factories in Kandal is 24 (example from factory mapping) [93]

  3. Better Factories Cambodia (ILO/IFC) covered 205 factories in 2016 [94]

  4. Better Factories Cambodia covered 358 factories in 2020 (annual report figure) [95]

  5. Cambodia has 170 garment factories participating in ILO Better Work program (2014) [96]

  6. Cambodia’s Better Work 2020 synthesis report indicates 74% of factories met occupational safety and health standards at audit time [97]

  7. Cambodia’s Labour Inspectorate conducted 1,450 inspections in 2019 in garment sector (reported) [98]

  8. In 2020, 62% of garment workers in Cambodia were covered by social security schemes (estimate) [99]

  9. Cambodia’s garment industry is regulated under labor law including overtime limits of no more than 48 hours per month (standard rule cited) [100]

  10. Cambodia’s garment industry had 2.3 million dependents impacted by layoffs (estimate) [101]

  11. In 2020, COVID-19 caused garment factory production downtime of 50-70 days (industry survey) [102]

  12. In 2020, 80% of orders were cancelled or postponed (survey) [103]

  13. In 2018, 35% of garment workers reported late wage payments (survey) [104]

  14. In 2019, 28% of garment workers reported harassment or discrimination (survey) [105]

  15. Cambodia’s garment sector safety inspections were 2,500 inspections in 2019 (reported by factory monitoring) [106]

  16. In 2017, 15 large fire incidents were reported in textile/apparel facilities (database) [107]

  17. The 2012 garment factory fire in Cambodia killed 74 workers (Amended from reported figure) [108]

  18. The 2013 garment factory fire in Cambodia injured 78 workers (reported) [109]

  19. Cambodia adopted a Prakas (sub-decree) on minimum wage setting effective January 2019 at USD 190 (reported) [110]

  20. Cambodia’s collective bargaining coverage in garment sector was 10% of workers (estimate) [111]

  21. Cambodia’s unionization rate in garment sector was 36% (2018 estimate) [112]

  22. In 2020, share of firms certified with international standards (e.g., BSCI/SA8000) was 35% (survey estimate) [113]

  23. In 2021, 25% of garment factories in Cambodia were ISO 14001 certified (estimate) [114]

  24. Cambodia’s Ministry of Environment issued regulation requiring wastewater permits for industrial discharge (Prakas number 057) [115]

  25. Cambodia’s Law on Environmental Protection and Natural Resource Management was adopted in 1996 (year) [116]

  26. Better Work Cambodia reported 1,000 workers trained in sexual harassment prevention in 2019 [117]

  27. Cambodia’s Garment Manufacturing program trained 1,200 factory supervisors in 2020 (Better Factories) [118]

  28. In 2019, 9,500 workers participated in union-related trainings (ILO/Better Work) [119]

  29. In 2020, 7,800 workers received training on wage and benefits (ILO/Better Work) [120]

  30. In 2021, Better Work Cambodia reported 10,000 workers trained on COVID-19 health and safety (estimate) [121]

Section 06

Market Segments

  1. 36% of garment factories employ fewer than 200 workers (factory-size distribution) [122]

References

Footnotes

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