The Ministry of Environment spearheaded an inter-ministerial meeting to reassess urban waste management and budget allocation. The meeting aimed to refine waste management strategies for town and district administrations, in order to boost efficiency and public wellbeing.

Key attendees included Say Samal, the Minister for Environment, and representatives from the Ministry of Economy and Finance, the Ministry of Interior, sub-national administration, provincial environmental departments, and several specialists, said an environment ministry release.

In his address, Samal emphasised the potential for waste management improvement.

“This meeting signifies a fresh chapter in urban solid waste management. The finance ministry is responsible for the budgets of all town and district administrations. However, this budget is intervention-based and not fully operational. Hence, town and district administrations need to explore additional revenue sources,” he said at the June 7 meeting.

Heng Socheat, deputy director of the Preah Sihanouk provincial finance department, also attended the meeting. He highlighted the meeting’s critical role in fostering discussions, experience sharing, and finding solutions to common challenges among town and district administrations.

“This meeting zeroes in on urban solid waste management to coordinate cleaning, collection, transport services and waste storage. This contributes to enhancing public wellbeing and attracting more tourists,” he said.

During the meeting, the environment ministry presented three key topics: the adoption of technology in solid waste management, financial procedures in relation to waste management, and budget allocations for town and district administrations.

The workshop also featured wide ranging discussions between cross-ministerial stakeholders and town and district administrations, which aimed to address challenges, devise solutions, and gather valuable input from district administrations, in order to enhance their efficiency.