English-Français
Japanese Ambassador: «Japan continues assisting Cambodia to foster Democracy»
×![]()
In the past 20 years, how much aid, loan and other cooperative assistance has Japanese government accommodated to Cambodia? What is the volume of the exchange trade between the two countries? How many Japanese investors are residing in Cambodia? And what will be the benefits of the first direct flight between Tokyo and Phnom Penh scheduled to start from September 1st? Japanese Ambassador to Cambodia, Mr. Yuji Kumamaru, answers these questions via an email interview with Mr. Leang Delux, deputy CEO of Thmeythmey.com.
LEANG Delux: Mr. Ambassador! Japan has played an essential role in uniting and developing Cambodia from early 1990s. Could you please tell us how much aid has Japan provided to Cambodia from 1993 to the present time? And on what sector has Japan focused the most?
Mr. Yuji Kumamaru: Japan has three kinds of aid instruments: concessional loan, grant and technical cooperation. Loan Aid Japan provided to Cambodia from Fiscal Year 1993 to Fiscal Year 2014 amounts to 88,382 million Yen (equivalent to 868.53 million USD). The amount of Grant Aid provided during the same period is 178,565 million Yen (equivalent to 1,754.77 million USD), while that of technical cooperation is 79,708 million Yen (783.29 million USD).
In order to achieve steady and sustainable economic growth and balanced development in Cambodia, Japan’s official development assistance focuses on three pillars of priority: (1) Strengthening of the basis for economic activities, such as developing economic infrastructure, strengthening the private sector and promoting agriculture and rural development, (2) Promotion of Social Development, such as improving water supply and sewage systems, health and medical care, education quality and demining, and (3) Strengthening of Governance.
LEANG Delux: From 1993 to 2016, what has been the total Japanese investment in Cambodia? How many Japanese companies have been operating in Cambodia so far? What kind of business do they run?
Mr. Yuji Kumamaru: According to the Council for Development of Cambodia (CDC), the amount of total investment by Japanese companies from 1994 to 2015 is 801 million USD. As this figure covers only the projects registered as the Qualified Investment Projects by CDC, the actual total investment amount by Japanese companies is likely to be bigger than CDC’s figure.
Concerning the number of Japanese companies in Cambodia, the number of regular members of the Japanese Business Association of Cambodia (JBAC) is 171 as of the end of Fiscal Year 2015. The number has tripled for the last five years. Now, Japanese companies do their business in a wide range of fields like manufacture, construction, services and so on.
LEANG DELUX: Mr. Ambassador! Could you please tell us how many Japanese people residing in Cambodia now?
Mr. Yuji Kumamaru: As of October 1st, the number of the Japanese living in Cambodia is 2,492 persons.
LEANG DELUX: What kind of products has Japan been exporting to Cambodia? And what are the Cambodian product imported to Japan?
Mr. Yuji Kumamaru: In 2015, export products from Japan to Cambodia are mainly construction equipment, bicycles and motorbikes. The total amount of export to Cambodia is 36 billion Yen (about 359.67 million USD). Import products from Cambodia are mainly clothes and shoes. The total amount of import from Cambodia is 117 billion Yen (about 1,151.73 million USD).
LEANG DELUX: The first direct flight from Japan is going to start on the 1st of September. What would be the meaning of this flight in terms of economics, tourism and bilateral relations between the two countries?
Mr. Yuji Kumamaru: ANA is going to launch its direct flight between Narita (Tokyo), Japan, and Phnom Penh. I hope that the direct flights will promote people-to-people exchange between our both countries in the areas of business and tourism. I would be glad to see more Cambodian people visit Japan, too.
LEANG DELUX: In your view, is Cambodia on the good track towards democracy?
Mr. Yuji Kumamaru: We would like to see Cambodia continues to uphold multiparty democracy as enshrined in the Constitution. The Government of Japan has been providing and will continue assisting Cambodia’s efforts to foster democracy.
LEANG DELUX: Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has invited Mr. Hun Manet to visit Japan. What would be the exact date of the visit? And if you could elaborate, why Japanese leader is interested in inviting him?
Mr. Yuji Kumamaru: The Japanese Government has program to invite important figures to Japan from all countries around the world, including Cambodia. We think Mr. Hun Manet is such a prominent person in Cambodia whom we decided to extend the invitation. Details of his visit are not worked out yet.
LEANG Delux: Mr. Ambassador! Japan has played an essential role in uniting and developing Cambodia from early 1990s. Could you please tell us how much aid has Japan provided to Cambodia from 1993 to the present time? And on what sector has Japan focused the most?
Mr. Yuji Kumamaru: Japan has three kinds of aid instruments: concessional loan, grant and technical cooperation. Loan Aid Japan provided to Cambodia from Fiscal Year 1993 to Fiscal Year 2014 amounts to 88,382 million Yen (equivalent to 868.53 million USD). The amount of Grant Aid provided during the same period is 178,565 million Yen (equivalent to 1,754.77 million USD), while that of technical cooperation is 79,708 million Yen (783.29 million USD).
In order to achieve steady and sustainable economic growth and balanced development in Cambodia, Japan’s official development assistance focuses on three pillars of priority: (1) Strengthening of the basis for economic activities, such as developing economic infrastructure, strengthening the private sector and promoting agriculture and rural development, (2) Promotion of Social Development, such as improving water supply and sewage systems, health and medical care, education quality and demining, and (3) Strengthening of Governance.
LEANG Delux: From 1993 to 2016, what has been the total Japanese investment in Cambodia? How many Japanese companies have been operating in Cambodia so far? What kind of business do they run?
Mr. Yuji Kumamaru: According to the Council for Development of Cambodia (CDC), the amount of total investment by Japanese companies from 1994 to 2015 is 801 million USD. As this figure covers only the projects registered as the Qualified Investment Projects by CDC, the actual total investment amount by Japanese companies is likely to be bigger than CDC’s figure.
Concerning the number of Japanese companies in Cambodia, the number of regular members of the Japanese Business Association of Cambodia (JBAC) is 171 as of the end of Fiscal Year 2015. The number has tripled for the last five years. Now, Japanese companies do their business in a wide range of fields like manufacture, construction, services and so on.
LEANG DELUX: Mr. Ambassador! Could you please tell us how many Japanese people residing in Cambodia now?
Mr. Yuji Kumamaru: As of October 1st, the number of the Japanese living in Cambodia is 2,492 persons.
LEANG DELUX: What kind of products has Japan been exporting to Cambodia? And what are the Cambodian product imported to Japan?
Mr. Yuji Kumamaru: In 2015, export products from Japan to Cambodia are mainly construction equipment, bicycles and motorbikes. The total amount of export to Cambodia is 36 billion Yen (about 359.67 million USD). Import products from Cambodia are mainly clothes and shoes. The total amount of import from Cambodia is 117 billion Yen (about 1,151.73 million USD).
LEANG DELUX: The first direct flight from Japan is going to start on the 1st of September. What would be the meaning of this flight in terms of economics, tourism and bilateral relations between the two countries?
Mr. Yuji Kumamaru: ANA is going to launch its direct flight between Narita (Tokyo), Japan, and Phnom Penh. I hope that the direct flights will promote people-to-people exchange between our both countries in the areas of business and tourism. I would be glad to see more Cambodian people visit Japan, too.
LEANG DELUX: In your view, is Cambodia on the good track towards democracy?
Mr. Yuji Kumamaru: We would like to see Cambodia continues to uphold multiparty democracy as enshrined in the Constitution. The Government of Japan has been providing and will continue assisting Cambodia’s efforts to foster democracy.
LEANG DELUX: Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has invited Mr. Hun Manet to visit Japan. What would be the exact date of the visit? And if you could elaborate, why Japanese leader is interested in inviting him?
Mr. Yuji Kumamaru: The Japanese Government has program to invite important figures to Japan from all countries around the world, including Cambodia. We think Mr. Hun Manet is such a prominent person in Cambodia whom we decided to extend the invitation. Details of his visit are not worked out yet.
© រក្សាសិទ្ធិដោយ thmeythmey.com
