EuroCham’s ASEAN-Cambodia Business Summit saw public and private players from across the region gather in Phnom Penh to discuss regional economic integration, while highlighting opportunities and challenges across various sectors.

The summit on September 28 and 29 brought together influential experts from both the public and private sectors, representing Cambodia and ASEAN member states, including high-ranking government officials and industry leaders.

During the two day event’s opening ceremony, the 2024 White Book was officially presented as an important policy guide. The launch of the online Advocacy Compass, a digital version of the White Book, will facilitate collaborative efforts in addressing identified issues and trends, and features figures.

Minister of Economy and Finance, Aun Pornmoniroth, expressed the significance of the White Book, stating that it not only provides valuable input for the Cambodian Government in formulating business and investment policies, but also fosters an ongoing dialogue between the Government and business community.

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"Moreover, the launching of the White Book 2024 not only provides input for the Royal Government of Cambodia in formulating policies and strategies to enhance the business and investment environment in the country, but also offers evidence of a continuous dialogue between the government of Cambodia and business communities," Pornmoniroth said.

The summit also featured a speech by Nut-Un Voanra, Deputy Secretary General of the Cambodian Investment Board, who discussed ‘Cambodia's Long-term Investment Support, Goals and Strategy’.

He referenced the recently unveiled Pentagonal Strategy Phase 1, which outlines the country's objectives to develop skill-based industries by 2025, achieve upper-middle-income status by 2030, and become a high-income country by 2050.

He added that to reach a Gross National Income per capita of $13,845 by 2050, Cambodia aims to maintain an annual growth rate of about seven percent from now until 2050.

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Cham Nimul, Minister of Commerce, opened the second half of the forum. During her opening remarks, she said, “The Mekong region is a strategic area with great development potential in Asia and beyond. Trade and investment have been key to stimulate economic development contributing to economic growth and poverty reductions of the people in this region."

She emphasized that these achievements are made possible due to the region being open, facilitating a non-discriminate business environment, especially to promote private sector engagement to boost vibrant economic activities.

“Although this region is vibrant and full of potential, to become an economic powerhouse in global production centers, Cambodia needs to do more to realize those potentials. We will further transform Cambodia into a new logistical and economic hub in ASEAN, especially the mega regions,” Nimul said.

“At the regional level, Cambodia as part of ASEAN has been synergizing our effort with those of other Asian members to develop and implement the Master Plan on Asian Connectivity.”

The next day's event saw the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between AHK Vietnam and EuroCham Cambodia to bolster German investment in Cambodia. The two sides pledged to share best practices and knowledge to better attract more investment and trade opportunities between Germany and Cambodia.

The event also highlighted the key essential insights before expanding business in the Kingdom, and a series of workshops delivered by industry leaders were held on transport and logistics, agriculture, digital and technology, tourism, garment and manufacturing, and construction.

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