Cambodia starts to build 108-meter-tall Buddha statue

Cambodia on Wednesday started to construct a 108-meter-tall Buddha statue on the top of Bokor Mountain here in the country's southwestern coastal province.

Minister of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction Chea Sophara said the seated Buddha statue in a cross-legged position was estimated to cost about US$30 million, and the construction will take four years to complete.

"It will be the tallest Buddha statue in Cambodia and one of the tallest Buddha statues in the world," he said at a groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of the statue.

"When the construction is completed, the statue will serve as a sacred shrine for the Buddhists and this area will become a major Buddhist tourist hub for Cambodia and the world," he said.

Buddhism is the state's religion in the Southeast Asian nation, where up to 95 percent of the population are Buddhists, according to the Ministry of Cults and Religions.

The Bokor Mountain is situated about 42 km west of the provincial capital Kampot, and 180 km southwest of the national capital Phnom Penh.