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Cambodia: Gov’t predicts per capita GDP will reach $1,771 next year
The Cambodian government has projected the country’s per capita gross domestic product (GDP) will reach $1,771 by the end of 2021, up from $1,600 this year, an anticipated increase of 10.6 percent.
The projection was announced by the Minister of Economy and Finance Aun Pornmoniroth while leading his team in defending the draft budget law for 2021 in the Senate, according to state media Agence Kampucha Presse.
It was reported that he stated the growth was made possible through various efforts of the government, which included the provision of tax incentives for small and medium-sized enterprises and key industries including tourism and hospitality.
Pornmoniroth added that although overall manufacturing exports had been hit by the pandemic, exports of bicycles, electrical and vehicle parts and accessories are all now rising. Exports of milled rice and other agricultural commodities have also surged, while domestic tourism has supported a partial recovery of the travel and tourism industry.
In September, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) revised its 2020 growth forecast for the Kingdom upward, citing the country’s improved agricultural performance and an increase in volume in non-garment manufacturing exports such as bicycles and electronics.
ADB had forecast a 4 percent contraction for Cambodia’s GDP in 2020, compared with its June forecast of a 5.5 percent contraction.
“We expect growth to rebound to 5.9 percent in 2021, boosted by supportive government policies, social assistance for the poor and financing support for small and medium-sized enterprises,” said ADB Country Director for Cambodia Sunniya Durrani-Jamal.
“These measures, along with much-needed structural reforms, will reduce the direct and indirect impacts of COVID-19 on families and businesses and help Cambodia’s economy emerge stronger from the pandemic, she added.
The Senate unanimously approved the $7.62 billion called for in the draft law on next year’s national budget, a half-billion decrease from this year’s total.
CPP Senator Sok Eysan said the 2021 draft budget was made with the COVID-19 crisis having been taken into account. He and the other senators fully supported the draft law.
Eysan, who also heads the Commission on Interior, National Defence, National Assembly-Senate Relations and Inspection and Civil Service Administration, said the recent floods in Cambodia had also negatively affected the country’s economic growth.
“Cambodia’s efforts to maintain 7 percent annual economic growth as well as reduce poverty have not been successful this year because of COVID-19 and the natural disasters,” Eysan said. “I support an initiative to restore Cambodia’s economy.”
The 2021 draft annual budget represents a 7 percent year-on-year drop from the 2020 annual budget total of more than $8.2 billion.
The 2021 $7.62 billion budget allocation includes $4.36 billion earmarked for current expenditures and $3.26 billion for capital expenditures.
According to a government document, in order to meet the expenditure costs, the government plans to collect around $5.275 billion in national revenue, with borrowing of around $1.5 billion from development partners making up the difference.
Source: https://www.khmertimeskh.com/50796692/govt-predicts-per-capita-gdp-will-reach-1771-next-year/