Cambodia and Malaysia Vow to Boost Cooperation in Human Resource, Employment and Economic Development
PHNOM PENH: The Prime Minister of Malaysia, Dato’ Sri Ismail Sabri bin Yaakob, met with Prime Minister Hun Sen on Thursday morning to hold a meeting to discuss bilateral relations and other fields of common interest. During the meeting, the two Prime Ministers pledged their commitment to strengthening cooperation in the fields of human resource development, employment, digital economy and green economy, in order to achieve long-term welfare growth and sustainable development for the benefit of both countries.
The two leaders agreed to further promote bilateral trade, investment, health, tourism, science and technology and people-to-people contacts in order to promote economic recovery after the Covid-19 crisis. To achieve this, the two Prime Ministers agreed to explore the possibility of establishing a partnership and sisterhood between Sihanoukville and Siem Reap with other cities in Malaysia as well.
The two Prime Ministers further encouraged businesses and investors to seek more business and investment opportunities in both countries, with agreements on avoiding double taxation and preventing tax evasion, related to income tax between the two countries, which came into force on 1 January 2021, and the new Cambodian Investment Law, which will provide an open, transparent and predictable legal framework that is more efficient for investment. The Malaysian side also expressed interest in seeking business cooperation in the fields of information and communication technology, financial technology, and cyber security in Cambodia.
The two sides also prioritized the strengthening of small and medium enterprises and startups and recalled the agreement between MRANTI (formerly known as MaGIC Malaysia) and Impact Hub Phnom Penh, to promote business start-ups and ventures of young entrepreneurs in both countries.
In addition, the two sides also highlighted the mutual positive economic growth in 2021, with Malaysia recording a growth of 3.5% and Cambodia, 3%. Both countries are also projected to have even better growth in 2022.
