1. Deputy Foreign Minister for Economic Affairs Lee Tae-ho, together with Sok Chenda Sophea, Secretary-General of Cambodia’s Council for the Development and Minister attached to the Prime Minister, held the first meeting of the Republic of Korea-Cambodia joint economic committee at the ROK Foreign Ministry on June 28. In the meeting, the two sides reviewed the progress in bilateral economic cooperation and discussed ways to step up cooperation on trade, investment and development, as well as on the regional level.

2. The two sides noted with appreciation the great increases in material and people-to-people exchanges between the ROK and Cambodia since the resumption of diplomatic relations in 1997, as demonstrated by the 16-fold and 9-fold growths in the trade and investment volumes, respectively, as well as the more than 300-fold increase in people-to-people exchanges, with an annual 400,000 people visiting each other’s countries.

3. The two sides reviewed the progress in overall bilateral economic cooperation, including in the infrastructure construction and water resources, and exchanged views on other matters of mutual concern.

4. The two sides noted with appreciation that the ROK and Cambodia, one of the ROK’s main partners for official development assistance (ODA), are continuously stepping up bilateral development cooperation through grants and the Economic Development Cooperation Fund (EDCF). They agreed to work closely together to make a success of the Saemaul Undong (new community movement) and other cooperation projects designed for Cambodia’s agricultural and rural development.

5. The meeting of the ROK-Cambodia joint economic committee carries significance in that it marked the formal launch of a regular consultative mechanism for the comprehensive management of bilateral economic ties. It is seen to have played a role in supporting bids of Korean companies to take part in infrastructure projects in Cambodia, resolving their challenges and further boosting bilateral economic cooperation.


* unofficial translation