James Whitehead / Khmer Times

Australia assured Cambodia that it would support the sustainable development and growth of the Kingdom’s rice sector production and assist Cambodian rice exporters in finding global markets for their luxury agricultural products.

The assurance was given by Derek Yip, Australian Ambassador to Cambodia, during a speech at the opening ceremony of the ‘7th Cambodia Rice Forum 2024’ in Phnom Penh, on Tuesday.

This year’s forum’s theme was titled ‘Transforming the Cambodian Rice Supply Chain to be Resilient, Inclusive and Sustainable’, and was attended by around 400 participants including key government officials, foreign dignitaries, private sector exporters and international importers, financial sector representatives and members of the Cambodia Rice Federation (CRF).

The closing ceremony of the event was also presided over by Prime Minister Hun Manet.

During his address, Yip detailed that Australian support for the Cambodian rice industry has historic roots. He noted that Australia has been working with Cambodia to support the growth of the agricultural sector as early as the 1960s.

Yip also commended the considerable progress made in the industry in recent periods, stating his pleasure to see significant progress in Cambodia’s rice exports sector, with rice exports valued at close to $1.8 billion in 2023 alone.

The ambassador pledged Australia’s intentions to continue its support of both the domestic production industry and international export growth.

“Australia is excited to continue our support, including through the Cambodia Australia Partnership for Resilient Economic Development (CAPRED), to help Cambodian rice exporters find a global market for their luxury products and to promote sustainable agricultural production and processing,” he said.

Australia was the primary sponsor for this year’s rice forum, via the Cambodia Australia Partnership for Resilient Economic Development (CAPRED) program.

Other key entities supporting the event included Khmer Enterprise, the Agriculture and Rural Development Bank and USAID-Feed the Future Cambodia Harvest III program.

Chan Sokheang, President of CRF, the forum’s core organizer, noted that in support of expanding export markets for premium rice products, Cambodian rice has already gained international fame as some of the world’s best rice.

Chan cited recent awards for the Kingdom’s finest rice, such as the ‘World’s Best Rice Award’ for Phka Rumduol in 2012, 2013, 2014, 2018 and 2022 as well as the Chinese ‘Golden Award’ for fragrant rice variety in 2023.

He also said that various efforts to modernize domestic agricultural practices and expand the international reputation for Cambodian rice have enabled the country to effectively expand its export market target dramatically in the last 14 years, which he said has increased from 35 targets in 2010 to 121 targets in 2023.

The CAPRED program referred to by Yip is a five-year program funded by the Australian Government and implemented by Cowater International.

Initiated in 2022, CAPRED focuses on supporting the Royal Government of Cambodia’s (RGC) inclusive economic growth and boosting resilience and sustainability in the post-pandemic era.

Focusing its efforts until 2027, the CAPRED program in Cambodia works primarily within three technical domains: namely agriculture and agro-processing; trade, investment and enterprise development; and infrastructure development.

The organization is also active in Cambodia in other areas related to gender equality, disability and social inclusion, policy support via the CAPRED policy hub, green finance and climate resilience programs.

CAPRED’s ongoing ‘Agriculture Sector Modernization Project’ (ASMP), for instance, aims to increase agriculture productivity and improve market access for Cambodian producers; as well as enhance value addition of smallholder farmers and agribusiness through the establishment of Agriculture Technology Demonstration Parks (ATDPs).

Partners of the ASMP project offer end-to-end technical advisory and implementation in the country.

This includes disseminating modern agriculture practices to farmers nationwide focused primarily on ten different crop types, including six tropical fruits and four vegetables.

The ASMP project is also set to establish state-of-the-art Post-Harvest Processing and Packaging Centres (PHPPCs) in Cambodia and other partnering Southeast Asian nations, facilitating increased export market linkages with local and international institutional buyers.

Published Date: September 12, 2024