The Cambodian government yesterday received a $70 million loan from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to expand the rice industry and support reforms in the finance sector.

Cambodian Economy and Finance Minister Keat Chhon and ADB country director Eric Sidgwick signed the bilateral agreements at the ministry’s office.

Chhon said “these two loans will further support developments in Cambodia with sustainability, inclusiveness and resilience”.

The Manila-based ADB will provide $55 million to the rice sector, which gets additional co-financing of $24.1 million from the Trust Fund for the Global Agriculture and Food Security Program and the Strategic Climate Fund.

The investment will cover initiatives in Battambang, Kampong Thom and Prey Veng provinces.

The funding will “support the government’s policy on the promotion of paddy production and rice export, which calls for improved seeds, more efficient irrigation, better farming practices, greater drying, storage, and milling capacities, and better marketing, thereby transforming Cambodia’s rice sub-sector from subsistence farming to commercially-oriented value-chains”, Sidgwick said.

As for the financial part of the package, $15 million will go towards further improving “the legal foundation for financial institutions to sustain financial stability” and “enhance market confidence.”