On August 2, 2024, at 9:00 AM at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Phnom Penh, the Ministry of Economy and Finance organized a consultation workshop on “The Identification of Priority Sectors for Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Projects for 2025-2035” presided over by His Excellency MEAS Soksensan, Secretary of State of the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF), representing His Excellency Akka Pundit Sapheacha AUN Pornmoniroth, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance. The consultation workshop, which is coordinated by the General Department of Public-Private Partnerships of the MEF, is attended by 122 participants from relevant ministries and institutions at both national and sub-national levels, State-owned Enterprises, and development partners,
On this occasion, His Excellency MEAS Soksensan stated that aligning with the Pentagon Strategy-Phase I of the Royal Government of Cambodia under the leadership of Samdech Moha Borvor Thipadei Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Cambodia, strengthening partnerships between the public and private sectors is a key side of the Pentagon in supporting economic diversification and growth in Cambodia through the development of the public investment projects under PPP mechanism, which aims to foster economic growth and reduce national budgetary pressure and burdens of public debt services.
His Excellency Secretary of State emphasized that, as part of the development path towards achieving the Cambodia Vision 2050 to become a high-income country, the Royal Government of Cambodia needs to prioritize key sectors for implementing PPP projects effectively and efficiently over the medium term. Based on this, the consultation workshop on “The Identification of Priority Sectors for PPP Projects for 2025-2035” was organized to ensure a comprehensive and coherent approach to identifying priority sectors for PPP projects in line with Government’s strategic policies and line ministries’ investment policies, which the inputs from stakeholders will serve as a basis for strategic planning in public investment and enhance the development of infrastructure and service projects through PPP.
His Excellency the Secretary of State also noted that identifying the priority sectors for PPP projects for 2025-2035 will support line ministries and institutions at both national and sub-national levels in shaping their PPP investment plans with the Government’s priority policies and taking ownership of project preparation by selecting appropriate funding sources with value for money.
As a result, the workshop provided an opportunity for an insightful discussion based on practical and long-term perspectives, which offered additional insights for the MEF in gathering an inclusive and comprehensive inputs to identify priority sectors for PPP projects over the next 10 years (2025-2035), aligned with Cambodia’s current context.
In conclusion, His Excellency the Secretary of State expressed gratitude to the World Bank representatives for their presentation on the “Cambodia Public Finance Review” which provided guidance for the next phase of the Government’s public financial management reform program and for identifying priority sectors for public investment projects under PPP mechanism. His Excellency also thanked the representatives from line ministries, institutions at both national and sub-national levels, State-owned Enterprises and development partners for the valuable inputs and recommendations in identifying priority sectors for PPP projects for the upcoming 10 years.