Officials earning 400,000 riels ($100) and up can cash their salary by bank

Saturday, June 23, 2007
Everyday.com.kh
Translated from Khmer by Socheata

Chou Kim Leng, deputy director of the Ministry of Economy and Finance, said that from now on, government civil servants earning a salary of 400,000 riels (~$100) and up can cash their salary by bank. In a seminar about the plan for paying salaries to government civil servants on 22 June in Phnom Penh, Chou Kim Leng said that the salary payment through a bank is the second step taken by his ministry, after a first trial period starting since May 2006 when two ministries allowed civil servants earning more than 400,000 riels to cash their salary by bank. The banking company selected to make payment for government officials is the ANZ bank [partly owned by Kith Meng, a crony of Hun Sen]. Chou Kim Leng said that salary payment by bank is easier, more efficient, and more transparent, and in its second step, the government decided to adopt this payment scheme for more than 25 institutions in Phnom Penh city, as well as for institutions in Siem Reap province and Sihanoukville city.