POIPET: Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin is paying his first official visit to Cambodia to hold bilateral meetings with Cambodia’s top leaders and to celebrate the opening of a service center for trafficking victims along the Thai border.

This morning, the Thai PM paid his respects to the late King Norodom Sihanouk by laying a wreath at the Independence Monument.

In a show of diplomacy and mutual cooperation, the Thai and Cambodian PM’s attended an official handover ceremony for the Transit and Reception Centre for Victims of Trafficking and Other Vulnerable Groups in Poipet, near the Thai border.

Minister of Social Affairs, Veterans and Youth Rehabilitation, Chea Somethy, accompanied the two Prime Ministers at the official ceremony, while spokesperson for the ministry, Em Chan Makara gave a speech detailing the significance of the center’s opening.

He noted that the center took almost exactly one year to build, with construction starting on August 15, 2022 and wrapping up on August 17, 2023. The Thai government was a main contributor to the center, allotting over $2.1 million to the project.

Em Chan Makara said that the center will receive migrant workers from Thailand who have been illegally trafficked and are in need of first aid and community care.

He noted that Thailand’s generous contribution will go towards funding accommodation, meals, health care, education, vocational training, and life skills for victims of human trafficking without discriminating on the basis of race, religion or disability.

The Thai PM was then treated to lunch at the Peace Palace with Prime Minister Hun Manet and other high-ranking officials.