You Voted for (1) Democracy and (2) Peace and Development
I am so happy to be able to return and meet our workers after we have postponed this meeting for more than a year. In fact the Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training prepared for the meeting to take place since December 2017 but I could not set up my time […] first of all, please allow me to take this opportune moment on behalf of the Cambodian People’s Party and myself to thank you workers/employees and people of Kompot and Kep provinces, as well as the Cambodian people in the whole country for voting the Cambodian People’s Party […] our people exercised their rights (1) to support process of liberal pluralism democracy defined by the Constitution. Those who participated in the elections support democracy. Those who opposed the elections were against it […] and (2) to keep peace and development. Voting for the Cambodian People’s Party is tantamount to voting to keep peace and development, voting for own selves and to keep achievements scored by your parents and grandparents […]
In 1999, Investments Oriented to Potential Provinces
Minister of Labor and Vocational Training, HE Ith Sam Heng has just made a report about progress made in the whole country as well as those achieved in Kompot province. We have 11,738 workers/employees, 357 are with pregnancies, from 12 factories in our meeting today. Twenty years ago, in 1999, I took the courage to set direction for investments to go beyond Phnom Penh and to wherever there are investment potentials. It is in this concept that we must see that having factories in provinces has provided us with tremendous interest, especially jobs for people in each own provinces and adjacent provinces, for instance among over 11 thousands workers here, some might be people coming from Kep, Preah Sihanouk, Takeo, etc. This has reflected that our organization of factories locations answers to potential in provinces […]
China to Purchase 400,000 Tons of Rice
We have enough rice (for consumption) and we have surplus of rice for export too. Last year, we had a surplus of 5.5 million metric tons of paddy. This year we may have a surplus of six million metric tons of paddy or roughly four million metric tons of milled rice. With this surplus, we are in search for market. China has produced more than enough to feed its people but President Xi Jinping, in the course of my recent official visit, declared China will help purchase 400,000 metric tons of rice in 2019 […] after scoring success in food production and for export, we set out structural reform of economy through policy for industrial development for 2015-2025 […] we must make efforts in every sectors […] agriculture as of this moment contributes 23% to our GDP, but we have rice more than enough for local consumption and for export. When agriculture covered 80% of GDP, we had shortage of rice […] we also have rubber, pepper, mango, etc. for export in agriculture.
Get to High-Middle Income in 2030
Industry has contributed 32% (to GDP) and the rest covered by service sector. If we were to pursuit agriculture alone, we would not be able to become a rich country. We might be able to survive but we would not be able to advance our country into a high-income one. Do not take me wrong. That does not mean we overlook importance of agriculture. We promote agricultural development and help our people resolves issues relating to agriculture […] we have stepped out from being a low income country to be a low-middle income country. We wish to advance our country further from low-middle income country to a high-middle income country in 2030. According to a general definition, income anywhere at 900 USD (per year) and below is considered low income. Income anywhere from 900 USD and up to 3,800 USD (per annum) is considered low-middle income, and Cambodia’s income of 1,636 USD would place us in there […]
Camcontrol Relieved Its Inspection Duty at Border Checkpoints
Yesterday, for your information, I signed a sub-decree to relieve inspection duty of Camcontrol (the Cambodia Import-Export Inspection and Fraud Repression Directorate-General) at border checkpoints to cut down complications and for better activities of imports/exports. We have issued a sub-decree now but we must continue to keep watching how it goes. My idea is to keep only immigration police and custom officers at the border checkpoints. Let us review, if there are still groups working at checkpoints from agriculture, etc. more actions need to be taken. Let us for the time being relieve Camcontrol (of its inspection duty) at the border checkpoints. Camcontrol used to collect a sum of more than 30 million USD (for the state coffer) […] the state will lose about 30 million USD but the private sector will gain 40 million USD. Why? There was another off-the-record 10 million USD […]
KAMSAB – No Longer There
KAMSAB (Kampuchea Shipping Agencies and Brokers) fulfilled its role in guiding ships to/from ports in the past 40 years. Previously, ships arriving at Point Zero, they must wait for KAMSAB to guide them into port. At present, there are advanced technology concerning navigation and there needs not be such guidance anymore. Ports to ships and ships to ports communication can be established directly. In light of this, from a meeting led by Deputy Prime Minister Aun Pornmoniroth, there were three choices for me to take from. Firstly, KAMSAB will stay but it must lower unnecessary prices for services it provides […] secondly, we could allow more agencies to compete for the job […] and thirdly, there would be no more KAMSAB and management and staff are to be transferred to the Ministry of Transports and Public Works […]
Management and staff may understand that they did nothing wrong but we need to have a structural readjustment for survival and competition of national economy, and trade facilitation […] take for instance in ASEAN, only Cambodia and Myanmar still have this kind of agency, while the rest already ended it […] management and staff of KAMSAB should not think of losing interest because they are still civil servants of the Ministry of Public Works and Transports […] our economy will better compete […]
John Kerry – A Good Friend
I have not got time to talk to Minister of Public Works and Transports yet as he is at this moment in a meeting in Switzerland, where he informed me of his meeting with former US presidential candidate John Kerry, who later became the US Secretary of State and visited Cambodia. He was the person who worked with me on laws relating to trial of the Khmer Rouge leaders […] he wishes to come visit Cambodia. He is a good friend. He was a US soldier and fought in Vietnam […]
To Relieve District-Level Offices of Certain Ministries
I will continue to embark on the path of reforms. It is time for operation. Where there are state agents or units that are not necessary, we will remove it from the lists. I may have attention of provincial governors, especially the district authority and concerned ministries, we may proceed to close down offices of certain ministries at district level. We will keep only offices of military, police, education, health, and land management as there are many land issues to look into. As far as production sector is concerned such as agriculture, water and meteorology, rural development, etc. we may gather them into one group. We also will do similarly to offices working in social affairs and culture, etc. We may call it a unified administration service office […]
More Staff, Less Works
Otherwise, ministry demands for more recruits and many of them send to district level […] I have said it in the Cabinet meeting that we must be saving more on recruitments. We must do the same at sub-national level […] in our country we have this situation that I call “More but less.” By “more” I mean we have more people (than we need) who are not capable of performing jobs/duties. By “less” I mean we do not have enough men with needed skills and expertise […] I just wanted your attention that there will be structural adjustment (for involved ministries) at district level […]
Defending Hard-Won Peace
I am seeking everyone to do your parts to keep peace and to guarantee development. Without peace, there will be no development. I find it hard to understand what is happening in Venezuela where the US and some countries offer recognitions to an opposition leader as President. I am afraid that fighting will erupt as I would be of the opinion that the incumbent elected President would not give way […] an opposition leader who did not participate in the elections has declared himself and by some as President […] would that be what they demanded for Cambodia? They may try it. Let them try recognizing a Prime Minister without approval of HM the King […] this is problem making. It is on this very circumstance that I demanded everyone to be cautious and to keep peace. We must not allow foreign interference, and joining hands with inside problem makers, to destroy our hard-won peace […]
Hun Sen Stands for People’s Supports
Your attitude towards me clearly signifies relations between a leader and his people. It has become a relations between father and children, grandparents and grandchildren, and between uncles and nieces/nephews. That is the pride I am taking in the past 40 years of my standing, and in which the 34 years in my premiership. Some have tried to discredit people’s supports on Hun Sen. They may think again. Lon Nol stood for five years. Pol Pot – with his barbaric leadership, stayed only for three years, eight months and twenty days. Hun Sen has been in power for 40 years, let alone as Prime Minister for 34 years now. I will continue for another five years and plus another five years up front. You may want to keep your eyes on. Without people’s supports, Hun Sen could not stand this far […]
Implement Court’s Order
I have been waiting here for the time to come […] they may announce their plan as to who would come or go from where to where and how to proceed to the airport, and how to arrange for the UN (people) to accompany the arrival. You may go ahead. I would not want to elaborate on this. I just need the person to go where s/he should be according to the court’s order. Yesterday, Samdech Krola Haom Sar Kheng made clear in his statement that he has the court’s order for arrest. What else do we need? […] that the person would return, it is like we have discovered dry wood while we are searching for something to make fire. Those who may not be concerned and do not wish to be in jail should not take such risk […]./.
