By Guy De Launey BBC News, Phnom Penh

Cambodia is at a crossroads, the World Bank says

The World Bank has warned that Cambodia needs to accelerate reform programmes to avoid severe economic problems.

The Bank's report comes less than a week before the Cambodian government meets its donor partners to ask for more than $1.5bn in aid. The World Bank says that Cambodia is at a critical point in its history.

It warns that meaningful reforms must be made in a number of key areas and failure would have severe consequences for the country's future and its poor.

Financial accountability and reform of the judiciary and the civil service are highlighted as areas that need particular attention.

There is also an emphasis on the need to combat corruption. According to the Bank's research, the vast majority of companies offer bribes to public officials in the course of their business.

There have been significant changes in Cambodia over the past 11 years.

The country's infrastructure has largely been rebuilt after decades of war. And the economy has grown at a rapid rate - thanks mainly to the garment industry.

But that is now threatened by the end of the US garment quota system.

Cambodia is once again about to go to the international community to ask for billions of dollars in aid over the next three years.

But the World Bank believes that international development partners may actually be slowing down the reform process.