PHNOM PENH, April 30, 2024 — On the eve of the 138th Anniversary of International Labor Day, Prime Minister Hun Manet outlined the Royal Government's dual goals of attracting investment to stimulate economic development and creating peaceful conditions across all enterprise locations for the benefit of the Cambodian people, especially workers.

In his message, Hun Manet emphasized that 2024 marks the beginning of the first phase of the pentagonal political program and strategy of the Royal Government's seventh legislature of the National Assembly. This phase sets six priority programs and five key measures designed to facilitate business, trade, and investment, thereby boosting economic growth across all sectors and improving the living standards of the populace with more jobs, higher incomes, and a sustainable path toward achieving Cambodia's vision of becoming a high-income country by 2050.

Reflecting this commitment, the Council for the Development of Cambodia approved 106 new investment and expansion projects in the first quarter of 2024, totaling $2.2 billion in investments and generating approximately 10,700 new job opportunities.

Moreover, the first quarter of 2024 saw a significant increase in enterprise registration with the Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training, with the number of registered enterprises rising from 40,975 to 43,849, an increase of 2,874. Correspondingly, the number of workers employed in these enterprises grew from 1,715,029 to 1,793,467, an increase of 78,438.

Hun Manet also reaffirmed the government's ongoing commitment to promoting the rights and freedoms of professional organizations in accordance with the Labor Law, the Law on Trade Unions, the Law on Social Security, the Law on Minimum Wages, and international labor standards. As of March 2024, the Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training had registered a total of 6,317 professional organizations, including 42 trade unions, 280 trade unions, 5,983 local unions, and 12 employers' associations.