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Sorry, this entry is only available in JP.

Sorry, this entry is only available in JP.

The Foreign Affairs Ministry yesterday said Japan will provide more than $43 million to fund two development projects in the Kingdom.

A ministry press release said Foreign Affairs Minister Prak Sokhonn and Japan’s Ambassador Hidehisa Horinouchi will today sign the Exchange of Notes on the extension of the Japanese government’s support for the two projects.

It said that Japan will provide a loan of about $31.56 million for the implementation of the West Tonle Sap Irrigation and Drainage Rehabilitation and Improvement Project 2.

The statement added that Japan will also provide about $11.8 million in grant aid for the implementation of the Development of Port Electric Data Interchange System for Port Modernisation project.

“This loan and grant aid package have been extended by the government of Japan to the government of Cambodia with a view to further promote the economic and social development of the Kingdom of Cambodia,” the statement said.

In April, Japan officially signed an agreement to provide Cambodia with grants and loans totalling more than $90 million. The funding is for the Phnom Penh City Transmission and Distribution System Expansion project.

Japan also provided grant aid of about $4.6 million to implement other economic and social development programmes.

Recently, Japan provided $529,068 to Shanti Volunteer Association to establish a library at a pre-school in Battambang province.

SVA aims to improve the quality of early childhood education through the establishment of a model preschool equipped with a library. It also aims to train preschool teachers and librarians in Battambang city.

The preschool library will accommodate about 450 children and 1,000 others in the province will be able to access its preschool education programmes.

The Japanese government’s grant assistance programme for Japanese NGO projects in Cambodia began in 2002 to support activities that help the Kingdom’s reconstruction and development efforts at the grassroots level.

Labour Minister Ith Samheng yesterday said Japan has agreed to allow Cambodians to be employed as full-time workers instead of as interns, as is the practice now.

He made the announcement following a meeting with Japanese ambassador Horinouchi Hidehisa at the ministry yesterday.

Mr Samheng said during the meeting, Mr Hidehisa informed him of the Japanese government’s decision and invited him to sign a new Memorandum of Understanding on the arrangement.

He said he will be going to Japan to sign it in the middle of next month and the arrangement will come into force in April.

“It is a new chance for Cambodian workers,” Mr Samheng said. “We hope that Japan will take in more Cambodians to work there because of the good cooperation between both countries.”

He said that presently, Japan takes in Cambodians interns and they only earn an allowance, and not full wages.

“When our workers get full-time jobs, they will get higher wages and better benefits than as interns,” Mr Samheng said, adding that they will also pick up more skills in the workplace.

He noted that currently there are 9,100 Cambodia workers working in Japan, earning an average of $1,500 per month.

In October last year, the Labour Ministry signed an MoU with the Japan and Cambodia Interactive Association to train more Cambodians to work in Japan. Cambodia has sent such trainees to work in Japan since 2017.

There are 90 private recruitment companies and two organisations that are licensed to choose, train, send and manage Cambodians working in Japan.

Skills being taught include agriculture, fishing, construction, food processing, garment manufacturing and caring for the elderly.

De The Hoya, a programme officer with labour rights group Central said the new MoU with Japan is good for Cambodian workers, but expressed concern that feedback was not sought from NGOs.

“Even though Japan is a developed and democratic country, we still have concerns over working conditions especially if the sending country does not set any terms of employment,” he said. “We are worried about rights abuse such as long working hours and other problems.”
 

ABA Bank, a member of the National Bank of Canada Group, plans to open another 11 branches nationwide in response to the rising number of customers.

Mey Polin, ABA business development manager, unveiled the expansion plans yesterday.

“Our business is growing more than 30 percent a year so we are expanding to give our customers a better and more convenient service.

“Second, Cambodia is growing at more than 7 percent per annum which creates more opportunities for our bank to increase its customer base,” he said, adding that, by the end of 2018, the bank had 64 branches nationwide, about 20 of them in Phnom Penh.

“This year we plan to open about 11 branches in Phnom Penh and in the provinces to handle an increase in the number of customers. Our customer base is growing exponentially, faster than what our current infrastructure can handle, so we need to expand,” he added.

In 2014, the National Bank of Canada acquired 10 percent of ABA Bank’s shares. It became a majority shareholder in 2017 with a 90 percent stake.

As of Jan 30, 2019, ABA’s total assets equal $2.81 billion, making it the third largest bank in Cambodia.

Ending last year, the bank had 426,000 customers and its outstanding loan portfolio reached $1.83 billion, an increase of about 49 percent year-on-year. At the end of 2018, deposits were worth $2.18 billion.

Last year, Standard & Poor’s revised the outlook on ABA to positive from negative, giving ‘B’ long-term and short-term issuer credit ratings.

The outlook revision on ABA reflects the bank’s improving business franchise, underpinned by significant growth in its market share, S&P said.

Japan yesterday pledged $529,068 to the Shanti Volunteer Association to build a model preschool, equipped with a library, in Battambang province.

The grant contract was signed between Horinouchi Hidehisa, Japan’s ambassador to Cambodia, and Kase Takashi, SVA country director.

According to a press release from the Japanese embassy, SVA aims to improve the quality of early childhood education through the establishment of a model preschool equipped with a library. It also aims to train preschool teachers and librarians in Battambang city.

The preschool will accommodate about 450 children and 1,000 others in the province will be able to access its preschool education programmes through the library.

Mr Horinouchi yesterday said that the project will create a model preschool to promote reading among children and increase the ability of teachers in Battambang to improve the quality of preschool education.

“We hope that this project will improve preschool education in Battambang province,” he said.

Mr Kase said there is currently an average of more than 50 pupils per classroom in schools, which is double the ideal number recommended by the Education Ministry.

He said teachers struggle to teach such a large number of children.

“Building this preschool can contribute to reducing the number of students in schools to attain the appropriate level and allow children to play and learn in a comfortable environment,” Mr Takashi said. “By promoting reading through the library and improving the teachers’ technical skills, we hope to improve children’s education.”

He added that SVA is collaborating closely with the provincial education department on the project.

“We will do our best to maintain good cooperation to implement the project which also contributes to boosting Japan-Cambodia relations,” he said.

Mr Kase said that the preschool is also expected to play an important role as a model learning academy in the province.

The Japanese government’s grant assistance programme for Japanese NGO projects in Cambodia began in 2002 to support activities that help the Kingdom’s reconstruction and development efforts at the grassroots level.

Since 2002, Japan has provided more than $35 million for 114 projects, mainly in the field of primary education, health, agriculture and mine clearance.

The first Chroy Changvar Bridge, more commonly known as the Cambodian-Japanese Friendship Bridge) will be temporarily opened for Khmer New Year in mid-April.

The Ministry of Public Works and Transport announced on its Facebook page on Friday (Feb 1) that the repairs on the Cambodia-Japan Friendship Bridge, which began in September 2017, are now 93 percent finished. The reconstruction project should to be completed on June 14, 2019.

Because the bridge’s repairs have progressed faster than expected, the ministry decided that it can be used to ease traffic flow during Khmer New Year.

In March 2016 the Japanese government granted funds for the reconstruction of the bridge, which suffered cracks from 12 years of usage. The rehabilitation project, guided by Central Consultant Inc. and carried out by the Obayashi Corporation (both Tokyo-based), began late 2017.

Japan allotted $181 million to renovate National Road 5 (Phnom Penh to Poipet), rehabilitate the Chroy Changvar Bridge, and support the Cambodian Mine Action Center’s demining operations; about $33 million were for the bridge.

The bridge was built in 1966, suffered serious damage during the civil war in the 1970s, and collapsed in 1972. It was later rebuilt with Japanese aid and recommissioned by the Cambodian government in 1995.

The Japanese government has granted its two NGOs in Cambodia $692,522 to fulfil their projects, and guarantee food and nutrition security for participants.

The agreements were signed on Thursday, Dec.27, within the framework of the Grant Assistance for Japanese NGO projects. The Heart of Gold and the Foundation for International Development/Relief (FIDR) are the beneficiaries.

As stated by the Japanese Embassy, the Heart of Gold gets $396,033 to support the National Institute of Physical Education and Sport. This will help improve curriculum, train teachers, and extend facilities for physical education. Approximately 65 staff members and 200 trainee teachers get a better environment and the 800,000 Cambodian students get more effective physical education.

The second project (by the FIDR) is in Kampong Chhnang and is allotted $296,489. With the aim of increasing rice farm productivity and diversification, improving children’s nutrition, and promoting farmers’ networks and agriculture cooperatives in Rolea Pheir, Tuek Phos, and Boribo districts.

Furthermore, approximately 250,000 people in the target areas are to get sufficient nutritious food through these grants.

Japanese Ambassador to Cambodia, Horinouchi Hidehisa, expressed his pleasure at granting this aid, “I hope that the teacher training project in Cambodia will grow and the physical education project flourish. I expect the second project will improve the livelihoods of the people in those areas, and afford them enough food and health.”

Tezuka Koji (Heart of Gold) and Minami Yumiko (FIDR) committed their organizations to efficiently operate the projects, saying that the Japanese taxpayers’ money will be put to good use.

Philippine Airlines (PAL) announced it will launch a flight service to Phnom Penh from Manila in early April.

Filipino media ABS-CBN quoted PAL president Jaime Bautista yesterday as saying that the airline will begin this year direct flights from Manila to Phnom Penh, as well as destinations in Vietnam and India

Mr Bautista said with the new flights the airline aims to make Manila a hub for passengers traveling from the United States to South and Southeast Asia.

“In opening this new routes Philippine Airlines is making a strategic decision to go beyond our traditional service of point-to-point market,” Mr Bautista told reporters.

The airline will fly from Manila to Hanoi starting March 31, to Phnom Penh starting April 1, and to New Delhi in the second week of April, Mr Bautista said.

Chea Aun, a spokesperson for State Secretariat of Civil Aviation (SSCA), told Khmer Times that this will be the second airline connecting Cambodia and the Philippines, with Cebu Pacific, a Philippine low-cost airline, flying to Siem Reap.

He said PAL has yet to confirm to SSCA the new flight’s launch date as well as its schedule.

The World Bank on Wednesday released its latest edition of Cambodia’s economic outlook, expecting that the Kingdom’s economy will grow higher this year compared to last year.

The World Bank Cambodia Economic Update, a biannual report that provides up-to-date information on short- and medium-term macroeconomic developments, said Cambodia’s economic growth rate will reach 7.1 per cent this year.

The figure is slightly higher than the seven per cent recorded last year. The growth is driven primarily by domestic consumption and exports, which are largely supported by strong demand in the US and the EU.

Despite the positive outlook, World Bank economists warned of external risks, which include the potential withdrawal of Everything But Arms preferences for Cambodia, and the unpredictable spill-over effects of the US-China trade dispute.

Internally, risks related to the financial sector should also be considered as the Kingdom continues to grow with large exposure to the construction and real estate sectors.

“Priorities for Cambodia include safeguarding the health of the financial sector, while building reserves, strengthening competitiveness, and preventing a rapid real exchange rate appreciation, given the recent surge in imports,” said World Bank senior economist for Cambodia Sodeth Ly.

The World Bank in 2016 revised the status of Cambodia’s economy, moving it up a rung from the low-income bracket into lower-middle income territory after its 2015 gross national income (GNI) per capita surpassed the $1,026 threshold to reach $1,070.

With economic growth averaging seven per cent annually, the Cambodian government expects the country to reach upper-middle-income status by 2030 and become a high-income nation in 2050.

To reach the next tier – the upper-middle income status – the Kingdom’s GNI per capita must reach $3,896, which is more than three times the current amount.

While long-term outlooks remain positive, World Bank Country Manager for Cambodia Inguna Dobraja said on Wednesday that Cambodia needs to develop its physical and human capital to attain higher income status in the long term.

“To achieve its upper middle-income country aspirations, Cambodia needs to increase its investment in human capital and infrastructure and adopt reforms that enable sustained and inclusive growth,” she said.

“Mobilising significant domestic savings to boost investment is critical to attaining what high-performing Asian economies have achieved.”

The World Bank report also calls for further bridging of the infrastructure deficit to absorb rising foreign direct investments in manufacturing and agro-processing, as well as continued improvements to the business environment.