PHNOM PENH: The new mandate of the Royal Government of Cambodia will continue the efforts to improve the country's business and investment climate by cutting costs and improving the efficiency of transport and logistics.

“Our aim is to raise productivity to meet the needs of all investors,” underlined Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Moha Borvor Thipadei Hun Manet in his remarks at the opening ceremony of the 20th ASEAN-China Expo held in Nanning, China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region yesterday morning

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Cambodia is deeply committed to collaborating with all government and private-sector stakeholders in the region to support trade activities that help address regional and global challenges, he affirmed.

Samdech Thipadei took the opportunity to emphasize the important role of trade in tackling global challenges to ensure that interdependence and globalization are mutually beneficial. Trade should not be used as a weapon that undermines global economic security, he stressed.

When Covid upended the world, movements of people declined but we saw first-hand that movements of goods continued to flourish, he said, recalling that in 2021 and 2022, trade in goods even exceeded pre-pandemic levels – highlighting the essential role of commerce in ensuring the socio-economic security of people around the world.

As the pandemic subsides, he continued, the world faces new challenges such as rising commodity prices, food insecurity, and climate change. In this sense, ASEAN and China are key players. We can show the world examples of tangible benefits of strengthening multilateral cooperation without leaning towards protectionism, unilateralism, or economic nationalism.

“Going forward, ASEAN and China need to reinforce our cooperation and interdependence by further opening markets and improving connectivity, supply chain resilience, supply-linked production capacity and trade facilitation. We also need to work together to promote two-way investment. In addition, we should strengthen technical support – especially in complying with market requirements and demands. Such support will help ensure that developing countries truly benefit from market openings resulting from multilateral trading mechanisms,” said Samdech Thipadei Hun Manet. AKP