PHNOM
PENH, 20 March 2012 (PRU) – Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister Dr. Sok An
on Tuesday welcomed a group of US investors who are interested in
learning about Cambodia’s development as the country is chairing ASEAN.
His
Excellency Dr. Sok An, who is also Minister in Charge of the Office of
the Council of Ministers, told a 28-member delegation led by Mr.
Alexander Feldman, President of the US-ASEAN Business Council, that
Cambodia’s economy is widely opened to US and other investors because
investment contributes to rebuilding the country after more than three
decades of civil war and internal rift.
The
US-ASEAN Business Council supports the US business presence in Cambodia
and provides information and support to those looking to invest in
Cambodia as well as in the region. It has helped Cambodia to develop and
implement policy changes designed to attract foreign direct investment.
Dr. Sok An said that Cambodia has approved 71 US investment projects, amounting to $1.3 billion.
The
Deputy Prime Minister responded to questions—including
Cambodia-Thailand bilateral relations, the petroleum draft law, tourism
and reforms—raised by the group.
Cambodia-Thailand
relations have been improved since Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra
came to office last year. The two-way trade, Cambodia imported goods
from Thailand worth $2 billion, while Cambodian exports to Thailand were
$200 million, Dr. Sok An said.
The
two neighbours have resumed work on the border issue, while two working
groups are preparing their experts and will have bilateral talks in the
future on how to reach a proper solution concerning the overlapping
claims area (OCA) offshore, he said.
Cambodian
experts are working on the petroleum draft law to ensure it will serve
Cambodia’s interests and respect investment in the field.
Dr. Sok An said that Cambodia has a high potential in tourism, mainly in cultural tourism and eco-tourism.
“If
Google was to participate in promoting Cambodia’s tourism sector,
Cambodia would achieve a higher tourism growth”, said the Deputy Prime
Minister.
Cambodia received nearly 3 million tourists last year and that figure is expected to increase 20 percent a year.
H.E.
Dr. Sok An, who is also the Co-chair of the Council for Legal and
Judicial Reform, briefed the delegation about Cambodia’s progress in
developing and implementing the rule of law, in which the
anti-corruption law is playing a key role in improving transparency and
accountability.
Members
of the group include Chevron, ConocoPhillips, ExxonMobil, Federal
Express, GE, Google, Hewlett-Packard, IBM, JHPIEGO, Microsoft, Qualcomm,
and RMA.
The
group congratulated Cambodia for chairing the Association of the
South-East Asian Nations and hosting the ASEAN Summit next month.