According to Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen when he chaired a cabinet meeting recently, the Cambodian government will continue to implement the Cambodian Industrial Development Policy from 2015 to 2025 to promote Cambodia’s economic growth and focus on economic diversification. According to Changing structural trends to improve competitiveness and productivity.
From 2017 to 2018, the Cambodian government implemented industrial development policies and achieved many positive results. The proportion of various industries in the GDP increased from 2015 to 2015. This increased from 27.7% to 32.6% in 2018. This reflects the fact that Cambodia continues to reform and promote changes in its industrial structure, gradually shifting from dependence on agriculture to promoting development.
The Cambodian government aims to increase the proportion of export products other than the textile and clothing industry to 15% and increase the export of processed agricultural products to 12% by 2025. Cambodia is committed to diversifying its export products, continuing to promote the growth of more diversified agricultural exports and reducing its reliance on textiles and footwear exports.
The Royal Academy of Cambodia stated that the government will continue to implement this policy and shift investment opportunities from the textile industry to other industries, gradually moving away from the textile and clothing industry. The European Union (EU) withdrew EBA trade preferences due to the impact of the Sino-US trade war.
Cambodia’s industrial development has entered the second stage. Previously only textiles and clothing were developed. In the second stage, agricultural products are processed into the food processing industry to cope with the overproduction of agricultural products and at the same time promote economic value-added growth.
As part of its industrial development policy, the Cambodian government will continue to reform tax regulations, armed forces, transportation systems, education and vocational training to accelerate industrial growth. In addition, the policy increased the proportion of registered small and medium-sized enterprises from 80% to 95%. The Cambodian government hopes that by 2025, 50-70% of small and medium-sized enterprises will have accurate accounting systems.
Textile is an important economic activity in Cambodia and the largest industry, currently employing about 750,000 people and accounting for 16% of Cambodia’s GDP and 80% of export revenue. However, due to the impact of the new crown epidemic, more than 250 garment factories in Cambodia were forced to close down, resulting in more than 130,000 workers losing their jobs. In addition, the EU’s decision to revoke EBA’s preferential export measures to the EU will also have a major impact on the textile industry and the entire Cambodian economy. Through policies to diversify the economy and diversify export products to reduce dependence on the textile and garment industries, Cambodia hopes to achieve sustainable economic growth while improving its advantages. </p
