Cambodia, Denmark vow to forge closer economic ties
Cambodia, Denmark vow to forge closer economic ties
Cambodia and Denmark have pledged closer economic cooperation to enhance tourism, trade and investment between the two countries, according to the Royal Embassy of Cambodia in Bangkok.
The vow was made during a meeting between Cambodian ambassador to Thailand Ouk Sorphorn and newly-minted Danish ambassador to Thailand and Cambodia Jon Thorgaard at the Danish embassy in Bangkok, the embassy said.
Denmark closed its representative office in Phnom Penh in June 2013 and is now represented in Cambodia through its Bangkok embassy, according to the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
At the meeting, Sorphorn highlighted the Cambodian embassy’s efforts to promote economic diplomacy – with a primary focus on trade, tourism and culture – as well as the “Thailand Plus One” investment policy to draw in more tourists and investors to come and do business in Cambodia.
“I would like to express my high appreciation for the past bilateral cooperation between Cambodia and Denmark,” he said.
The Thailand Plus One strategy is a business model in which Japanese companies extend their supply chain networks developed in Thailand to neighbouring countries to benefit from low-cost production sites while maintaining their primary regional production base in Thailand.
At the meeting, Thorgaard noted that the Danish government’s ongoing mink cull was hammering exports from Denmark to Cambodia, but was upbeat about the prospect of further cooperation with the Kingdom.
“I am optimistic about the commitment to continue to promote economic diplomacy with each country – Cambodia included – to strengthen and expand trade volume,” he said.
The Danish government ordered the destruction of the country’s up-to-17 million minks over concerns that a mutated version of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus which has spread among the animals could hinder the effectiveness of a future vaccine, according to the BBC.
Cambodia Chamber of Commerce vice-president Lim Heng lauded the two countries’ devotion to cooperation, which he said is “in line with the government leadership’s strategy to further expand domestic and overseas markets for the development of the national economy”.
He pointed out that Cambodia exports a number of key goods to European countries – including Denmark – such as milled rice, garments, footwear, bags, travel products and electrical components.
According to Sorphorn, the bilateral trade volume between Cambodia and Denmark stood at more than $300 million last year.
The Kingdom exported 4,167 tonnes of milled rice to Denmark, according to statistics from the Cambodia Rice Federation.
