The National Assembly on the morning of October 14 provided a unanimously vote of confidence in the appointment of Dith Tina as Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. Tina will replace former minister Veng Sakhon, who was recently announced as a Minister Delegate attached to the prime minister.
The vote was by cast by the 111 members who were in attendance, led by assembly President Heng Samrin. Prime Minister Hun Sen was also present at the meeting.
Born on January 7, 1979, in Phnom Penh, Tina graduated from Preah Sisowath High School in 1994 and pursued his studies in France from 1996 to 2002. He graduated from Ecole Nationale superieure des mines de Paris (now MINES ParisTech) with a diploma in mining engineering. On top of that, he earned a master’s degree in physics from Paris-Sud University – one of France’s most prestigious institutions.
Since 2009, Tina has been employed in the civil service. He was an undersecretary of state at the Ministry of Commerce before being promoted to secretary of state in 2013. Since 2014, he has assumed a new role as secretary of state at the Ministry of Mines and Energy.
Following the vote of confidence, Tina posted on Facebook, thanking the prime minister for having confidence in him and for giving him the opportunity to serve the nation in the position of Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries.
He also offered thanks to National Assembly President Heng Samrin, first vice-president Cheam Yeap, and second vice-president Khuon Sodary, as well as the assembly’s standing committee, who agreed to set the meeting, with a single agenda.
He also thanked all 111 of the lawmakers who voted to support him for the position.
“The approval of the National Assembly is a great honor and responsibility. It has given me the courage to fulfill the mission of serving the Kingdom and its people in the sector of agriculture, forestry and fisheries,” he said.
On the same day, King Norodom Sihamoni issued a Royal Decree, officially appointing Tina as Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, at the request of Prime Minister Hun Sen.