Foreign donors' STUPID ineptitude is showing up year after year ... when will they wake up and smell Hun Xen's STINKY injustice?

Foreign donors, Cambodian officials meet over development aid dialogue

April 20, 2011
Xinhua

Cambodian government officials, representatives of foreign development partners and civil society met here on Wednesday to revise the development progress under the foreign aid pledged by those donor countries and to hear Cambodia' s needs for 2011.

Speaking at the opening ceremony of the 18th meeting of the Government-Development Partner Coordination Committee on Wednesday, Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister Keat Chhon, minister of finance, said that most of the activities for 2010's social and economic development have been implemented and achieved the goals despite some challenges in resource constraints.

"Cambodia is on the right track to develop its economy, and ie expected to see growth of more than six percent in 2011 with almost all sectors," (sic!) he said.

Groups Want Donor Money Well Spent

Ros Sothea, VOA Khmer
Phnom Penh Wednesday, 09 June 2010

“The development made by the government has yet to satisfy people."

With $1.1 billion in funding pledged by donors last week, the leader of Cambodia’s minority opposition party and the head of a leading non-government agency say the money should be watched closely to ensure it helps the country’s poor.

Ahead of a two-day meeting last week, members of the development community put forward their own proposals for spending the money, including increased reform of the judiciary, the proper implementation of current laws and protection of the indigenous.

Sin Somuny, executive director of Medicam, which provides healthcare assistance to the country, told “Hello VOA” on Monday that in order to meet such goals, “the right to access to information for local communities is needed.”

Asked whether the aid money will help reduce poverty—a key goal of the government—Sin Somuny said it would depend on the effective use of the money for development.

Last week’s cumulative aid pledge represented yet another increase in money, but Kem Sokha, president of the Human Rights Party, told “Hello VOA” there has been little change in the country’s development.

Human resources, health and agriculture are all major sectors that need attention, he said, so that the impoverished can benefit from the aid money.

“The development made by the government has yet to satisfy people,” Kem Sokha said. “Compared with a few years ago, it is a bit better, but many problems remain.”

Int'l monetary agencies should respect independence of Cambodia: Cambodian PM

PHNOM PENH, Oct. 8 (Xinhua) -- Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen on Thursday expressed his dissatisfaction of the international monetary institutions who are working with the Cambodian government.

The international financial agencies such as the World Bank and IMF always impose conditions for their assistance for Cambodia when they want to provide development projects to the country, the premier said at the celebration of the 30th anniversary of the reestablishment of National Bank of Cambodia.

"They told us to do this and that and in fact they could not do that," he said, adding that "they have to respect independence and sovereignty of the country."

Meanwhile, Hun Sen also ordered his government officials should not only say "yes or Ok" as following with those partners. "They should not have their hands into the work of the country. They are development and cooperation partners," he noted.

He said that now the World Bank is starting working with the government to study about the impact of the typhoon storm "Ketsana" which hit Cambodia last week. The aid will be provided to help and develop the storm hit regions, he said. "But if it is complicated, we have to stop the projects and we will use our own money." So far, at least 17 Cambodian people died of storm.

Last month, Premier Hun Sen ordered his officials to terminate the land titling program with the World Bank.

Donors air next year’s aid agenda

Wednesday, 30 September 2009
Sebastian Strangio and Vong Sokheng
The Phnom Penh Post

LAND rights, judicial reform and the global economic crisis are to be among the key challenges for Cambodia in 2010, according to foreign donors, who have expressed cautious optimism about the government’s progress in key areas.

Speaking at the Government-Development Partner Coordination Committee (GDCC) meeting held in Phnom Penh on Tuesday, senior officials and diplomats discussed the country’s progress on the series of Joint Monitoring Indicators (JMIs) that are linked to annual donations of foreign aid.

“This meeting of the GDCC is taking place at a particularly critical juncture, as we are seeing more clearly the impacts from the global economic downturn and the slowdown in Cambodia’s economic growth,” World Bank Country Manager Qimiao Fan said in a statement released following the meeting.

German Ambassador Frank Markus Mann hailed “very positive results” in the land sector but said a spate of recent land disputes represented an “urgent” challenge to poverty reduction and equitable economic development.

Similarly, Australian Ambassador Margaret Adamson praised recent actions on judicial reform, including the government’s plan to send the long-awaited anticorruption law to the National Assembly “in the coming weeks”, but expressed concerns about the recent crackdown on government critics.

The meeting came ahead of December’s annual Cambodia Development Cooperation Forum, at which foreign nations are set to announce their aid donations for 2010, but critics have long questioned the utility of such meetings.

In a February report, international group Global Witness argued that despite promises of reform dating back to 2001, the government has failed to deliver, noting the continued lack of an anticorruption law.

Sam Rainsy Party spokesman Yim Sovann said donors, who pledged nearly US$1 billion in aid in 2009, had the power to pressure the government on key issues, but that past experience was not encouraging.

“If they continue to do what they’ve done in past years, there will be no improvements,” he said.

Chith Sam Ath, executive director of the NGO Forum, who attended the meeting, said it was positive that the issues were being raised but that the government’s commitment would be tested in between the government-donor forums.

“There need to be further discussions between NGOs and development partners,” he said. “NGOs welcome” further discussions and dialogue.

Aid Money Urged for Development

Kuoy minority community representatives, from left: Sok Heng, of Oddar Meanchey, and Ruos Han, of Kratie province

By Sok Khemara, VOA Khmer
Original from Washigton
16 December 2008

The $1 billion in foreign aid promised to Cambodia earlier this month should go into the hands of the people and their communities, addressing government policies, a community leader said Monday.

“Poverty reduction is not what the government’s policy is,” said Sok Heng, a minority representative from Oddar Meanchey province, as a guest on “Hello VOA.”

Joined by Ruos Han, a Kuoy minority from Kratie province, Sok Heng urged the government to undertake better studies of land and forest concessions before handing them over to private businesses.

Land theft and disputes have emerged as a continuous problem in Cambodia in recent years, with minority groups especially hard hit, and both men urged the government Monday to use the foreign aid to develop communities to help alleviate it.

“Where more development occurs, that’s where people are facing difficulties,” Sok Heng said.

“Without the preservation of our natural resources, our minority community cannot survive,” Ruos Han said. Without such resources, minorities have a very difficult time surviving, because they don’t engage in typical businesses, he said.

After nearly 15 years of development, Cambodia remains heavily reliant on foreign aid for its operations, and donor countries and agencies were especially forthcoming with funding this year.

Both men said Tuesday that money does not reach its targets and is often hard to track. Money for infrastructure, schools, clinics, seed, canals and other agriculture was needed, they said.

Aid Packet Comes With Some Expectations

By Chun Sakada, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
05 December 2008

Click here to listen to the Khmer audio program

Donor agencies and governments said Friday they had confidence in Cambodia’s commitment to pass an anti-corruption law and continue reforms in public finance and transparency, justifying a decision to hand the government a giant aid package.

The nearly $1 billion in aid pledged Friday was to support the government’s development plan, help the country grow, and help reduce the number of poor, said Qimiao Fan, the World Bank’s Cambodia manager and facilitator for the 17 donors.

“In our support, we encouraged the government to improve the transparency and the management of these resources for the benefit for the people,” he said. “The government needs to further integrate the planning with budgeting and aid management, so that these resources raised from external donors they use efficiently and effectively for the benefit of the Cambodian people, particularly the poor and vulnerable.”

“Priority areas” discussed in the two days of meetings included education, health, agriculture, infrastructure and social protection, he said.

The British government, which increased it aid from about $20.5 million last year to $26.4 million this year, would support “a number of areas of development, particularly supporting good governance, the health sector, and rural development,” the country’s ambassador, Andrew Mace, said Thursday.

“The prime minister set out some very clear challenges facing the country,” he said. “He set out a very clear agenda for action by his own government, and a willingness to work in close partnership with the donors, and we welcome that very much.”

“We recognize very well the need of the Cambodian people for assistance…in addressing issues such as health, education, road developments, [and] many challenges facing them,” he said. “We’re working closely with the government to know those areas. We welcome their commitments in those areas. I welcome their commitments for good governance and combating corruption [and] we look forward to those commitments to been turned into practice.”

Cambodia Awarded Nearly $1 Billion in Aid

By Heng Reaksmey, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
05 December 2008

Click here to listen to the Khmer audio program

Cambodia was awarded nearly $1 billion in aid promises Friday, with Chinese aid surpassing that of any other country or agency.

“This week is a $1 billion week for Cambodia,” Keat Chhon told reporters after the two-day donor meeting ended Friday. “This aid package we have not yet divided into loans and grants,” he said, and the total so far did not include aid from some agencies or countries.

Of the total $951.5 million, China pledged $257 million, compared to $91.5 million. The EU pledged $214 million, compared to $170.2 million last year. Japan maintained its aid level, promising $113 million this year, compared to $112.2 million in 2007.

The US, which was the No. 3 donor last year, with $48.8 million in pledged aid, did not disclose an amount Friday, but officials said they were committed to a strong relationship with the government.

The government said in a statement Friday the country’s economic growth rate was likely to fall in 2009, meaning “the Royal Government will need to maintain commitment to the current reform program, react swiftly to minimize adverse effects of global recession on key sectors and the poorest segments of the population, and to focus on rural development and the modernization of agriculture in order to protect people’s livelihoods.”

Donor countries pledge about $1 bln to Cambodia for 2009 [-Hun Sen's lip service pays off handsomely]

PHNOM PENH, Dec. 5 (Xinhua) -- Donor countries have pledged about one billion U.S. dollars of aid to Cambodia in 2009, Keat Chhon, Cambodian Minister of Economy and Finance, said here on Friday.

"So far, they have pledged about 951.5 million U.S. dollars," Keat Chhon, said at a press conference after the meeting between donor countries and Cambodia.

"But Belgium needs the approval from parliament first and the United States is in the transition of a new president. So they have not claimed yet," he added.

He said that China is the biggest donor of Cambodia in 2009 with about 257 million U.S. dollars of aid.

The European Union (EU) is the second with 214 million U.S. dollars and Japan is the third with about 113 million U.S. dollars, he added.

International institutions and donor countries promised some 600 million U.S. dollars of aid for the kingdom in 2007.

Thai princess visiting Cambodia

Tuesday, December 25, 2007
Everyday.com.kh
Translated from Khmer by Socheata

Princess Moha Chakrey Sirindhorn, the daughter of the Siamese king, arrived in Phnom Penh on Monday for a 2-day humanitarian visit to regions in Cambodia which she is providing help. Two to three hours after her arrival in Phnom Penh, the princess went to meet with King Norodom Sihamoni, and she then continued her trip to Kampong Thom province to visit the professional training school which she funded. On Tuesday, the princess will travel to Stung Treng, Ratanakiri, and Mondulkiri provinces, where she provided help to fight malaria. Princess Sirindhorn will return to Thailand at about 6:00 PM on Tuesday.

Please tell us ...

Aid to Hun Sen's regime

With the upcoming Consultative Group meeting in Phnom Penh on 19-20 June 2007, do you think there will be any changes in the aid package provided to Hun Sen's regime?

No, donor countries will provide aid as usual in spite of human rights violations, broken promises

Most likely not, donor countries will make some tough statement, but will provide aid as usual

Yes, donor countries will drastically cut its aid to Hun Sen

US Amb ambiguous position regarding GW report: Mussomeli supports GW report but not the fact that GW is accusing individuals

Friday, June 15, 2007
Rasmei Kampuchea newspaper
Translated from Khmer by Socheata

“Cambodia can be considered as one of the countries that has a good human rights record when compared to a number of other countries” - Joseph Mussomeli, US Ambassador to Cambodia

Joseph Mussomeli, US Ambassador to Cambodia, said that he supports the Global Witness report regarding illegal logging and corruption which cause several problems (in Cambodia), however, he does not support the political attitude taken to accuse each individual without sufficient evidence.

During a visit to Peace Corps volunteers who are currently teaching English at the Hun Sen Svay Chrum high school on 13 June, Amb Mussomeli declared in an interview with reporters that he shares the concerns expressed by Global Witness regarding illegal logging and corruption which cause a lot of problems, however, he criticizes the entire Global Witness report for accusing each individual without providing sufficient evidence to back up the accusations made against these individuals.

Mussomeli said: “We do not support the accusations made by Global Witness against each individual because it does not contain sufficient evidence.”

“In the future, I am confident that Global Witness and the Royal Government of Cambodia will hold a constructive dialogue because Global Witness has a lot of issues to raise to the government, and the government also has a lot of explaining to do on the issues raised by Global Witness,” Mussomeli added.

Regarding Mr Yash Ghai, the UN Special Envoy for Human Rights in Cambodia, Amb Mussomeli said: “It’s a fact that Mr Yash Ghai and human rights organizations has an important role in advancing human rights issues, and I hope that the relationship between Mr Yash Ghai and the Royal Government of Cambodia will improve in the future, and that they both will hold a dialogue to discuss on a number of issues that they need to accomplish.”

Nevertheless, Amb Mussomeli said that “Cambodia can be considered as one of the countries that has a good human rights record when compared to a number of other countries.”

When questioned about the impact of Yash Ghai’s human rights report and the Global Witness report on the upcoming Consultative Group (CG) aid forum to Cambodia, to be held between the Cambodian government and the aid providers, Amb Mussomeli provided his opinion by saying: “At the upcoming CG meeting, donor countries will not have major problems (that will force them) to cut aid to Cambodia, even though Global Witness asked for donor countries to apply pressures on Cambodia regarding illegal logging.”

He provides this opinion based on two factors: (1) government officials and other officials are actively working to fight against illegal logging, and (2) donor countries are coming to Cambodia to provide aid to the Cambodian people on AIDS issue, on healthcare issue, on lack of food for children issue, therefore, what can Global Witness do to reduce this kind of aid? I believe that it (GW) cannot do it.”