But beware the sincere-sounding salesmen in Phnom Penh.
With no stock market, a murky investment climate and a weak legal framework, Cambodia at first blush seems to have little to offer regional and other foreign investors.
But take a closer look and you will find a rich gemstone industry thriving in both Pailin along the border with Thailand, where many of the country's precious and semi-precious stones are mined, and in the capital Phnom Penh, where scores of jewellery shops offer tourists and residents real and not-so-real stones.
Pich Uon, pictured, opened his Pailin Jewellery shop opposite Phnom Penh's Phsar Thmei, or Central Market, about six years ago and carries both ready-made jewellery and loose stones, the most valuable of which he keeps locked up in his office rather than in the small showroom.
He caters mostly to Thai and Taiwanese businessmen who return to their countries and sell Cambodian gems for a profit, though he also does a rich business with tourists and upper-class Cambodians who love donning gem-studded jewellery.
"Thailand is the world's marketplace - Thais collect gems from other countries and sell to the world," he says. "And the world needs Cambodian gems because here they are natural, they are from nature."
Indeed, neighbouring Thailand does a thriving business in gems and jewellery, primarily targeting the nearly 10 million foreign tourists who travel to the country each year. Cambodia, by comparison, sees fewer than a half-million tourists per year, though the country's image as a dangerous war-torn destination is slowly changing.
Pich Uon maintains that many jewellers outside Cambodia add synthetics to enhance the colour and richness of the stones, thereby decreasing their value and watering down the stones' natural state while at the same time garnishing a larger profit from unwitting buyers.
"Cambodian people don't want to do that. It is against the Cambodian way. I do not want a bad reputation because I want my shop to be here forever."
That said, Pich Uon is worried that Cambodia will not be able to supply the world with its gemstones forever, a phenomenon that obviously could drive up the price of the country's gems in coming years.
"The mines become smaller and smaller and the customer base becomes bigger and bigger," he laments.
Getting that much-desired bargain on an authentic stone - Cambodia's most precious being rubies and sapphires - is no easy task, as there are plenty of fakes being hawked by sincere-sounding salesmen in the capital's many jewellery stores and various markets.
Whether you're looking to enhance your own jewellery collection or turn a profit by re-selling your purchase, no one wants to find out too late that they've spent hundreds of dollars on a hunk of coloured glass.
Most of us don't carry around the necessary high-tech equipment to test the authenticity of the gems on offer or have the expertise to even use such equipment, but there are ways to make sure you're getting what you pay for.
As with many investments, it's advisable to chat up friends and acquaintances before going shopping to find out which jewellers are trustworthy and which ones aren't. "Only buy from a jeweller who gives a written guarantee to refund your money if the product is not what it purports to be... If you can't get a money-back guarantee, don't buy," warns David Mead, a self-taught gem expert in Phnom Penh.
"How do you find those jewellers? By asking your friends - those who have been here long enough to have their jewellery and stones tested - which jewellers they trust."
Making a US$20 investment in a 10-power triplex loupe, a special magnifying glass used to view gems, is also a good idea, Mead says. "Just pulling it out will show they have an expert on their hands... Hold the loupe close to the eye and bring the gem toward it. When looking for inclusions, or flaws, look through the back of the stone... Almost all natural gemstones will have some minor flaws, such as a small speck of iron or a wispy feather-looking inclusion."
Rubies are the most-precious stones mined in Cambodia, followed by the so-called "cornflower blue" sapphires. The standard of gem-cutting in Phnom Penh is on par with world-wide standards and the cost to have a stone re-cut to fit a jewellery setting is cheap - only a few US dollars, typically.
In general, one carat of the best-quality ruby costs up to US$650. One carat of high-quality blue sapphire runs to about US$200, whereas a green or yellow sapphire costs no more than US$100 per carat, Mead says.
Other semi-precious stones - blue zircon, peridot, amethyst, spinel and garnets - generally cost up to US$10 per carat, he adds.