PHNOM PENH Oct 15 - Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet on Monday reiterated the Southeast Asian country's commitment to the multilateral trading system and support for free trade. He made the remarks in Phnom Penh during celebrations marking the 20th anniversary of Cambodia's accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO).
Hun Manet said that Cambodia became the 148th member of the WTO on 13 October 2004 and the Kingdom has gained a lot from trade with the rest of the world due to its accession to the WTO.
He said Cambodia would continue to use existing bilateral, regional and multilateral free trade agreements, such as the Cambodia-China FTA, the Cambodia-South Korea FTA, the Cambodia-United Arab Emirates FTA and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, to expand its exports.
He added that Cambodia's inclusion in the WTO and these trade pacts will help the kingdom move away from least developed country status by 2029, become an upper middle-income country by 2030 and a high-income country by 2050.
Cambodian Minister for Trade Cham Nimul said at the event that joining the WTO has given Cambodia better access to international markets, allowing it to diversify its exports in various sectors such as textiles, agriculture and electronics.
It added that FDI has also seen a remarkable increase from $110 million in 2000 to about $5.3 billion in the first nine months of 2024.
Cham Nimul added that Cambodia's trade volume has also increased from about $4.5 billion in 2004 to $47.88 billion in 2023.
The Minister said this progress has significantly reduced the poverty rate in Cambodia from 60 % in 2000 to 16 % in 2022.
XINHUA/ gnews - RoZ
PHOTO - Facebook
English 
Czech