Prime Minister Hun Sen has touted Cambodia’s “strong” agricultural sector as a solution to economic pressures during the global pandemic, though some observers doubt agriculture could make up for garment sector losses due to Covid-19 and the pending withdrawal of some E.U. trade perks.
Prime Minister Hun Sen on Monday said the government would distribute about $25 million per month to assist families registered in the IDPoor social benefits system as the country struggles through the pandemic-driven economic downturn.
Cambodia could see negative growth this year — for the first time since 1994 — due to the pandemic-spurred economic crisis, the World Bank projected on Friday, estimating even more severe hits to the nation’s key industries than it did two months ago.
After the National Bank suggested lenders cut struggling borrowers a break, some financial institutions say they are relieving customers affected by Covid-19 disruptions on a case-by-case basis. But civil society groups say the measures won’t offer debt relief quickly enough.
Cambodia’s service sector will be hit hard by the global economic shock of the coronavirus pandemic, contracting 1.7 percent for the year, the Asian Development Bank said in its latest forecast.
The government is preparing to set aside up to $2 billion in reserves to respond to the economic fallout of the Covid-19 global outbreak, Prime Minister Hun Sen said on Tuesday.
Prime Minister Hun Sen on Monday said China was transporting raw textile materials to Cambodia to relieve some garment factories of shortages caused by the Covid-19 outbreak, which a union leader called a welcome but short-term fix.
Amid economic risks from the global coronavirus outbreak and the E.U.’s partial suspension of duty-free trade benefits, Prime Minister Hun Sen on Monday laid out measures aimed at shoring up the nation’s key tourism and garment sectors.
Possible E.U. trade sanctions, rising indebtedness and slowing foreign investment — which “peaked” last year — pose substantial risks to the Cambodian economy despite continuing strong growth, the World Bank said in its latest country update.
Cambodia needs to diversify exports and upskill its labor force, with productivity in its dominant garment export industry stagnating compared to competing economies in part because workers don’t have the “skills to attract higher-value FDI, nor do they have the means to acquire those skills,” according to a new World Bank report.
Before the Khmer New Year holiday — which was rescheduled for next week and typically sees millions travel around the country — the government is urging drivers and travelers alike to take basic health precautions before hitting the road.
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