British Official Discusses Trade With Minister
The United Kingdom has expressed its interest in developing four key areas to boost Cambodia’s economic growth and strengthen cooperation between the two countries.
A senior official in charge of British business affairs for Southeast Asia, Christopher Pook had a meeting with Minister of Commerce Pen Sour Sam, on Wednesday, November 7,
Mr Pook emphasized that the UK aims to provide financial assistance to support the implementation of key projects in Cambodia such as infrastructure development, human resource training, public welfare improvement and technical modernization.
The UK senior official added that besides these priority areas, many British investors are looking for opportunities to expand their business and investment in Cambodia and the ASEAN region, but need the infrastructure and human resources to support this.
In response, the minister welcomed the British intentions and explained the Government’s vision, the Rectangular Strategy Phase 4 Industrial Development Policy and Investment Policy, which focuses on attracting investors and developing skills to diversify.
The minister asked Britain to consider joining the “One Belt & One Road, China” and a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) agreement with Cambodia to ensure deeper cooperation on the economy and trade between the two countries.
In addition, he called on British investors to invest in physical infrastructure, industrial human resources, agricultural science and trade facilitation, as these are all the priorities to support Cambodia’s economic development.
The bilateral trade volume between Cambodia and the United Kingdom has grown considerably, with Cambodia’s exports increasing from $ 752 million in 2014 to $ 1.014 million in 2017.
Meanwhile, Britain’s foreign direct investment (FDI) to Cambodia in 2017 was US $ 55 million, making Britain one of the top ten countries investing in Cambodia.
