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Cambodia: Kingdom focuses on economic diplomacy to boost growth
Cambodia has promoted economic diplomacy to attract investors, businessmen, and tourists as the country’s socio-economic activities have been resumed.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation organised a national consultation workshop on ‘economic diplomacy in the new normal’ with support from China’s Lancang-Mekong Cooperation (LMC) Special Fund yesterday.
The workshop, held in a hybrid format, was attended by around 170 stakeholders in person and dozens of the country’s ambassadors and consul-generals abroad via video link.
Economic diplomacy is the linkage between foreign policy and diplomacy and national economic development.
It is the merging of economic aspects into foreign policy, and the use of diplomatic mechanisms to advance economic interests by ways of cooperation with national and international actors as well as with other countries around the globe.
Economic diplomacy will strengthen Cambodia’s national prestige by advancing and maximising national economic interests.
Ouch Borith, minister attached to Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and foreign ministry’s permanent secretary of state, said the economic diplomacy strategy (2021-2023) was essential to help develop the country’s economy.
The discussion provided a forum for sharing constructive opinions between ministries, institutions and the private sector to further strengthen the implementation of Cambodia’s economic diplomacy strategy, address challenges, as well as clarify the roles and responsibilities of stakeholders and diplomats, Borith said.
“The strategy is crucial to help boost the economic growth, reduce reliance on external aid, and promote the interest of Cambodia across the world,” he said.
Borith added that the strategy was designed to attract more foreign direct investment, further boosting bilateral and multilateral trade growth, and lure more tourists to the Kingdom.
The Cambodian diplomatic mission officials abroad have been tasked to spread and disseminate the potential of tourism, investment information, culture, and agricultural products. The investment law, the Regional Cooperation Economic Partnership, bilateral free trade with China and South Korea have also been promoted widely.
Speaking at the event, the Chinese Ambassador to Cambodia Wang Wentian said that the country is ready to help the Kingdom to achieve the target of economic diplomacy, citing that the relations between both countries have been enhanced constantly.
Wentian said he was confident that the economic diplomacy strategy would inject a new impetus into Cambodia’s economic recovery in the post-pandemic period.
“The Chinese side is happy in cooperating with Cambodia to continue traditional ties of friendship for creating a new model for actual cooperation of economics and trade, help Cambodia to reach the goal of economic diplomacy 2021-2023,” Wang said.
“As the Covid-19 situation in Cambodia has been brought under effective control, with zero new cases and no active cases, and more than 94 percent of its population have been vaccinated, I believe that the Cambodian economy will recover fast from the pandemic,” he said.
Source: https://www.khmertimeskh.com/501102127/kingdom-focuses-on-economic-diplomacy-to-boost-growth/