Prime Minister Hun Sen asked a former South Korean leader to help promote Cambodia and attract more Korean investors to the Kingdom now that there is a free trade agreement (FTA) in place between the countries.
Hun Sen met with South Korea's former deputy prime minister Ou Myung and a Korean industry delegation on January 14 at the Peace Palace in Phnom Penh.
According to Hun Sen’s personal assistant Eang Sophalleth, Oh Myung said he appreciated Cambodia’s rapid development and how much progress it has made since he last visited the Kingdom 10 years ago.
“I have observed that Cambodia is very favourable for investment from Korea. Cambodia and Korea have a free trade agreement. Cambodia is peaceful, politically stable and is not prone to natural disasters. What Cambodia lacks is that Korean investors do not yet have a clear understanding of the investment situation in Cambodia,” Oh was quoted as saying.
Hun Sen thanked Oh for lauding Cambodia's peace and political stability. He also noted that although some areas are prone to flooding, the Kingdom has not not experience large natural disasters such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions or hurricanes.
“I ask you and the entire delegation to help promote this [investment] situation so that Korean investors will look at Cambodia and understand these favourable factors,” the prime minister said.
He added that Cambodia and South Korea have an FTA and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) in place, which allows Korean companies to own 100 per cent of their shares without requiring any domestically owned shares, and Cambodia allows US dollars to be used to pay workers' salaries without requiring a bank transfer.
Hun Sen also briefed the Korean delegation, saying that Cambodia also has high-quality commodities such as cashew, rice, rubber, cassava as well as a labour force with many young workers.
The premier asked them specifically to help promote investment in the processing industry for goods such as cashew as well as bringing high-tech industries to Cambodia.
