Cambodia, Viet Nam to Push for Economic Connectivity 2030


Cambodia and Viet Nam have agreed to further boost more economic activities, trade, and other sectors for mutual benefit, pointed out a press release from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation issued after the 20th Meeting of the Cambodia-Viet Nam Joint Commission on Economic, Cultural, Scientific and Technological Cooperation.

“To maintain the momentum, the two sides agreed to cooperate and expedite the completion of the Master Plan on Cambodia-Viet Nam Economic Connectivity 2030 within this year,” it said.

According to the same source, both sides agreed to effectively implement the signed MOUs and Agreements, including the Agreement on the Transit of Goods between Cambodia and Viet Nam and further facilitate the goods in transit under the provisions of bilateral, regional and international agreements to which both sides are parties, in particular the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) Agreement.

They also reviewed the progress of the implementation of the Agreed Minutes of the 19th JC Meeting held in December 2021. They agreed to further promote regular exchanges of visits and meetings between Leaders, ministries, institutions and local authorities of the two countries to strengthen cooperation in all fields including Education and Human Resource Development, Agriculture, Science, Technology and Innovation, Trade and Investment, Transportation, Post, Telecommunications, and Information and Communication Technology (ICT), Culture, Sports and Tourism, Border Issues, Defense and Security, among others.

Furthermore, both sides discussed the strengthening of cooperation in sanitary and phytosanitary measures to prevent the cross-border spread of pest and infectious diseases, Phnom Penh-Bavet-Moc Bai-Ho Chi Minh City rail link, and so on.

The 20th Meeting of the Cambodia-Viet Nam Joint Commission on Economic, Cultural, Scientific and Technological Cooperation was held on Mar. 21 under the co-chairmanship of H.E. Prak Sokhonn, Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation and his Vietnamese counterpart H.E. Bui Thanh Son.

Besides the meeting, H.E. Prak Sokhonn paid an official visit to Vietnam, during which he paid separate courtesy calls on and conveyed the warmest regards of Cambodia’s leaders to H.E. Vo Van Thuong, President, and H.E. Pham Minh Chinh, Prime Minister of Vietnam.

Despite the challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the two-way trade volume between Cambodia and Viet Nam grew remarkably, reaching US$10.57 billion by 2022, an increase of 10,88 percent compared to 2021.