Cambodian PM Shares Insights into Sustainable Future of Developing Countries

Cambodian PM Shares Insights into Sustainable Future of Developing Countries

Mr Hun Sen, prime minister of Cambodia, has shared a seven-point insight into how developing countries can continue to build up sustainable future.

In his keynote address to the virtual 2020 Sustainable Development Impact Summit of the World Economic Forum (WEF), held Tuesday under the theme “Building Forward Sustainably in Emerging Economies”, the Prime Minister shared experiences and measures aimed at accomplishing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals, in the context of all countries exerting utmost efforts in the post-COVID-19 economic recovery.

Hun Sen said the spread of the COVID-19 has increased concerns and uncertainties in regional and global socio-economic development cooperation. “Therefore, the combat against the COVID-19 is a common cause for all of us, despite the fact that our respective countries are at the different stages of the epidemic,” he underlined.

As mentioned in his keynote address, the seven important points are as follows:

1. The impact mitigation and the stabilisation of people’s lives, productions, business operations as well as investments, are important tasks that each government has to strive to implement as much as possible. In order to achieve this goal, the RGC has implemented five rounds of well targeted and timely measures, continue to carefully monitor the situation, and be ready to implement additional concrete measures if needed.
2. The Royal Government of Cambodia’s philosophy is to turn the threat of the COVID-19 into opportunities for reforms within each country. In this sense, I would like to emphasise that the RGC has not slowed down at all its reform agenda in all sectors on one hand. And on the other, our goal is to raise Cambodia’s competitiveness through the ease and establishment of a favourable environment for businesses and investments within the country.
3. The COVID-19 epidemic has impacted negatively public finance, especially the government’s revenue. The loss of revenue requires each government to introduce new mechanisms in order to mobilise financial resources to be used for future development. To achieve this goal, I am of the view that Public-Private Partnership (PPP) is an indispensable and core mechanism that will help solve the financial difficulties of developing countries, both during and after the pandemic.
4. During this difficult time, in order to advance their reform agendas, developing countries need global cooperation, particularly the preservation of both bilateral and multilateral partnerships, aiming at ensuring an environment for development, peace and stability at the regional and global levels. At the same time, the strengthening and preservation of international investment flows, tourism flows and smooth and free flows of cross-border trades, particularly the free movements of necessary goods such as foods and medical supplies, are the vital factors for ensuring stability, safety, social balance and the revives of supply and production chains, within each country, as well as at regional and global levels.
5. We have to continue strengthening the momentum of globalisation, which has significantly contributed to economic growth and created unprecedented conditions for poverty reduction and the promotion of the livelihood of people from all walks of lives. In this context, we have to ensure that our cooperative mechanism can still maintain a spirit of openness and support for the multilateral trade system, especially the acceleration of socio-economic connectivity for each country’s development agendas in a sustainable and inclusive manner.
6. Without any further delay, we have to start thinking strategically of the restoration and the recovery of the economy once the pandemic subsides, through accelerating of the implementation of existing and newly-introduced plans and mechanisms, in a speedy and very effective manner.
7. At the global level, we have to continue ensuring the sustainability of international aids, particularly financial aids, for developing countries so that they can continue to drive progressively their reforms which are part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals. In this context, on behalf of the Royal Government of Cambodia, I would like to express my profound gratitude and sincere appreciation to all development partners for their proactive cooperation, and technical and financial assistances that have enabled Cambodia to effectively control the spread of the COVID-19.”