Bavet Checkpoint: Moc Bai, Viet Nam / Bavet, Cambodia on Route 1 to Phnom Penh. Photo by Gerhard Jörén/ADB.
The Government of Cambodia will host the 25th Meeting of the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) Subregional Transport Forum (STF-25) on 14 June 2022 in Siem Reap, Cambodia. The theme of STF-25 is “Taking Action on GMS 2030 Strategy and COVID-19 Plan with Emerging Ideas.”
Sustainable tourism supports the SDGs, revives the environment, and boosts communities. Photo credit: ADB.
Instead of recapturing the tourism of the pre-pandemic era, countries should strive to create a new kind of tourism that is more closely aligned to the SDGs.
Lao PDR Foreign Minister Saleumxay Kommasith and Cambodia Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Prak Sokhonn. Photo by Lao PDR Foreign Ministry
Electricity trade between Cambodia and the Lao People’s Democratic Republic raised the annual value of bilateral trade to more than $100 million in 2020 from a previous value of $10 million-$20 million. This was noted by Cambodia Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Prak Sokhonn and Lao Foreign Affairs Minister Saleumxay Kommasith in their meeting on 16 February. Mr. Kommasith was in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, from 15-17 February 2022 to attend the ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Retreat.
Migrant workers are essential to economic and social development across the Greater Mekong Subregion. They compensate for a growing shortage of labor and contribute substantially towards the economic well-being of many households through remittances.
A cruise ship in Ha Long Bay, Viet Nam. Photo by Bryan Lippincott (CC BY-ND 2.0)
The 25th Meeting of ASEAN Tourism Ministers held on 19 January 2022 in Sihanoukville, Cambodia, exchanged views on the way forward for the recovery of the region’s tourism industry. Bearing the theme “ASEAN – A Community of Peace and Shared Future,” the Meeting discussed the impact of COVID-19 on each ASEAN member state and emphasized the development of the tourism sector amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.
Decline in Tourist Growth
Waterfall in Phnom Kulen, Siem Reap, Cambodia. Photo by Kim Seng (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)
The Government of Cambodia’s Ministry of Environment plans to develop and establish ecotourism in protected areas of Siem Reap, Kampong Speu, and Koh Kong provinces under the “Cambodia Sustainable Landscape and Ecotourism Project.”
Areas that will potentially be developed include the Preah Jayavarman-Norodom National Park “Phnom Kulen”; the Oral Mountain Wildlife Sanctuary and the Central Cardamom Mountain National Park; and the Tatai and Peam Krasop Wildlife Sanctuaries.
$95 Million ADB Loan to Help Cambodia Purchase Safe and Effective COVID-19 Vaccines
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a $95 million loan to help the Cambodian government vaccinate Cambodians against the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) from 2022 to 2023, including annual booster shots for those already vaccinated and primary doses for children under 5.
ADB has approved two grants to boost tourism and rice production in Cambodia.
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved two grants totaling $6.8 million to help revive tourism in Cambodia, boost the country’s rice quality and production, and repair the rice supply chain damaged by the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.
Soeung Bunthoeun, 66, is one of the Agricultural Cooperative Sangha Phal community members in Prey Sangha Village, Kgnach Romeas commune, Bavel district in Battambang province. Photo by Chor Sokunthea/ ADB.
The workshop “Climate-smart Agriculture in the context of the Water-Food-Energy Nexus” will be held on 24 March 2022, supported by the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) Sustainable Agriculture and Food Security Program (TA 9916). TA 9916 aims to contribute to the Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) assistance on the Water-Food-Energy Nexus and assist in promoting cooperation across the GMS in efforts to reduce Nexus trade-offs.
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), in collaboration with the Ministry of Industry, Science, Technology and Innovation and the Ministry of Economic and Finance of the Government of Cambodia, held a virtual discussion on the status of Cambodia’s fourth industrial revolution (4IR) and pathways for the country’s transformation to this new industrial model by 2030 on 7-8 December 2021.
Greater Mekong Subregion Secretariat
Regional Cooperation and Operations Coordination Division,
Southeast Asia Department, Asian Development Bank
Address: 6 ADB Avenue, Mandaluyong City 1550, Metro Manila, Philippines
Telephone: +63 2 8632 4444 Fax: +63 2 8636 2226
