Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
Distinguished National and International Guests, Civil Servants and Beloved Students!
Today, It is my pleasure to officiate the inauguration ceremony of the New Building of the Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction. This new building is suitable for the governing ministry being in charge of construction and urban planning while the ministry now has 118 new buildings at municipalities, provinces, district/khan across the nation. Therefore, this new building is another achievement in early 2012. Overall, these achievements will not only create a strong base for further improving work efficiency of the government, but make us proud and famous on the international arena.
Indeed, physical infrastructure development is a need of the government, aiming at supplying goods and enhancing public service to maximize the benefits to society and a priority for socio-economic development policy and Cambodian lives. This achievement results from our concerted efforts with strong commitments over the last three decades, by overcoming a number of difficulties and obstacles to restore and construct our nation. These have also created incentive mechanism to double our efforts in strengthening and enhancing the development of physical infrastructure toward profound progress for Cambodia socio economy.
Taking this opportunity, on behalf of the Royal Government, I highly congratulate the management and officials of the Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction for the construction of this new building. I believe that this new building will make it convenient for the management and officials to fulfill their duties and better enhance work efficiency. At the same time, I highly appreciate H.E IM Chhun Lim and his colleagues, who effectively governs the implementation of government policy, for the remarkable achievements and close cooperation with relevant ministries/organizations to realize the office building project based on formula of “exchange horse for horse”. I am of the view that we have made the right decision because old building is small and located at various locations which are far from one other, making it difficult to manage, in particular hard to communicate with one another.
In addition, we are under circumstance that state budget are needed to invest in other priority projects, in particular the construction of infrastructure such as roads, bridges, school building, hospital etc. Therefore, we have to use “exchange horse for horse” formula as we have been done to construct office building of government ministries/organizations in order to get new building with larger office space and many rooms. For example, this new building stands 9 floors tall and consists of a number of working and meeting rooms which are equipped with advanced equipment and is another achievement among others, which are constructed in order to better public service. In this regard, I would like to suggest the management and civil servants of the Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction to continue your concert effort and active action suitable for this new concrete building and modern equipment in ultimate goal to further make the enhancement of land.
I also would like to highly value the architecture of the building, which was designed and constructed with perfectly fit size and sculpture laid out skillful and creative architect, construction engineer and technician of Khmer handiwork of the officials of the Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction. In addition, the project study had been thoroughly made and had a long visionary thinking and effective use in longer future in consistent with technical standard to ensure quality, safety and beautifulness. Taking this opportunity, I also congratulate Khun Sea Group Development Co. LTD and technical supervisor group, workers and all company’s staff, who have been demonstrated their strong commitment to the government, strictly obeyed the construct of location exchange principal to timely, successfully and safely construct this new building, while real estate market is still not favorable.
As mentioned in the report of Senior Minister, Im Chhun Lim, the construction of the Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Constriction is finished one mandate later than that of other institutions, but this achievement is timely appropriate as the Ministry has brought together interrelated tasks including specialized work, land management, urban planning, construction, land survey and geography under one roof, which in the past were in separate office locations. Truly, collecting different specialized agencies together under one roof that are lacking understanding of each other’s work is really difficult. But, the work output of this ministry that has steadily progressed in the past 13 years, which made many memorable results that have contributed to the achievements of the Royal Government.
The Ministry has developed and strengthened institutions and human resources that are carrying out works on many project sites, as well as served as commanding officer for the Royal Government in the preparation of key basis for important policy and legal frameworks, which are used as a roadmap for achieving the right goals of the land reform policy of the Royal Government and showed the improvement in the ownership of the Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction. The work includes an achievement in issuing 2 million systemic land registration certificates that have already been given to our people, which is a remarkable result. Besides, last year we began implementing a new formula, which is “Land Survey Feeds Land Survey”; we need to work hard on implementing that formula further in order to accelerate tasks related with land management, urban planning, construction, land survey, and geography which are a basis for social development and a basis for economic growth.
Regarding this point, I remember that on 2nd December 2000 I handed out the systemic land registration certificates in Sre Ta Sok village, Chom Reas Pen district, Somrong commune, Takeo province, which an important starting point. Through further efforts of the management and personnel of the Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction, I believe that the third million certificate will be issued in 2013 and I would be happy to hand it out in my capacity as a pioneer in the re-establishment of private property possession regime including the Private Property Possession on Land . In general, land registration work is a priority work of the Royal Government that the Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction and all relevant institutions need to cooperate and work hard in promoting, although the land possession situation at present is generally stable, because this is an important work for the registration system that has been determined in the land management administration law as well as in the civil law, especially the prevention and elimination of conflicts arising from lands.
Furthermore, if we look at the issue of social land concession that H.E. Senior Minister Im Chhun Lim brought up, which are related to the implementation of social land concession distribution policy for former armed forces and their families, up to now it has been addressed in line with the principles that I determined. In compliance with the state budget provided each year, I allow the use of that budget for step-by-step development, based on the availability of the budget. On top of that, I would like to clarify the implementation approach as follows: the preparation of social land concession program is planned according to the number of families that are to receive residential land, agricultural land, as well as a house, which is called a “Complete Unit”. However, in the implementation of the 1st phase of the program for 2011, there were 4,111 families selected whereas the state budget was only able to provide for 2,000 families of social land concession.
Hence, following the request of the Social Land Concession Committee, I have allowed the use of the budget in a way that helps some families receive social land concession in a complete unit and others receive land but not yet receive houses, and instructed the implementation based on a step-by-step development measure in a budget cycle. In other words, some families only receive lands first and stay in the waiting lists for next budget cycle for the development of their lands into complete units. The practices of providing land first, but not yet house, are a means to enable them to take care of the land and develop it gradually according to their abilities while waiting for the state budget for later years, and also the Social Land Concession Committee can continue the development until every families receive a complete unit.
This measure has been implemented with “Frog’s Leap”, and the National Social Land Concession Committee needs to draw on the experience from the program in the 1st phase and put it in practice for the implementation of social land concession at the local level in general. In the implementation of this principle, I would like to admire the General Secretariat of National Social Land Concession for initiating the use of budget for land preparation into 3 types; 1st type– a house with level residential, agricultural lands, 2nd type– level residential and agricultural lands without a house and 3rd type- land that has not been level yet, but has been paved with roads for preparing the land into lots, and all the lots are numbered for transparent lotteries, which have achieved the result as mentioned in the report of H.E. Senior Minister Im Chhun Lim.
In relation with program of national and local Social Land Concession, due to the national budget cannot carry out the implementation of the “complete unit” formula in general I would like to provide some recommendations for the Social Land Concession and the management of the Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction as follows:
First. The General Secretariat of the Council for Land Policy needs to re-evaluate the practicing measures in order to implement the principle that has already been set in the effective policy and legal standards, and that is the implementation of the 3P principle (PPP= Public Private Partnership) by linking it with the social land concession program and economic land concession program, given to private investors, through contract farming. That includes the examination and consultation on working structure of the management, and the implementation of principles and legal procedure in order for private sector to be willing to invest with the 3P formula and allow large agricultural businesses and subsistent agricultural farming to be mutual complements and work together on the issues of capital, crop seeds, cultivation technique and raising as well as marketing.
Obviously, the government provided economic land concession to develop national economy, but first of all is to provide benefit to people dwelling in invested areas. While the government’s policy on land management which is inscribed in the government’s declaration on land policy already highlighted importance and relationship between land titling and utilization of small, medium and big-size land. Therefore, family-based agro-business will ensure local balance and regional balance, livelihood stability; prevent rural-city migration so on. However, while we are witnessing benefit of small scale family-based, we must understand importance of agro-industry which requires big scale agriculture land to increase value-added of our agricultural products. To meet these objectives, I would like to request secretariat of Council for Land policy to seek formula for 3P principle to be concretely implemented which could solve many problems. On the other hand, this measure will attract people from high-density region to agro-industry region which will demand for hug labor force in the near future.
Second. The ministry of land, urbanization and construction must continue partnership between international and national non-governmental organizations to strengthen solidarity in society, to mobilize financial, material and technical resource to meet demand from fast-developing works related land management, urbanization, construction, cadastral and geography.
Third. Continue building institutional capacity and human resource, enhancing the sense of responsibility and professionalism of all levels of social official in order to fulfill their duties in the new era. In that we must we comprehensively implement all reform programmes in all sectors in conformity to the government policy in order to increase efficiency of service of urbanization, construction, cadastral and social land concession. At the same time, all officials of social land concession committee and of ministry of land management, urbanization and construction and adhere to concept of providing benefit to the people not seeking rent from the people. Of which, we must ensure that all the people receive good and complete service.
As above mentioned, this will make Cambodia truly more capable to build and develop national socio-economy once Cambodia has established full peace and stability. In light of this, we must continue make use of opportunity, talent, capacity and resources in order to transform this era into firm foundation for the next generation development like what we inherited from our ancestor during glorious Angkor era. Although, we acknowledged that we have made enormous achievements in this sector, we are still coping with urgently emerging key issues such as human resource and institutional capacity building, strengthening and expanding socio-economic infrastructure in addition to this new enormous building.
Finally, together with the official inauguration of Ministry of Land Management, Urbanization and Construction Building at this moment, I would like to wish Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen, National and International Guests, Students the four gems of Buddhist blessing: Longevity, Nobility, Health and Strength.
