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The Mirror, Vol. 12, No. 567

“Phnom Penh: According to a source from the Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training, Cambodia will create a National Occupation Agency soon to help prepare and support exporting part of its labor force to foreign countries. Mr. Pich Sophan, the Secretary of State of the Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training, values to export part of the labor force to foreign countries through labor migration as very important for Cambodia both now and in future, because it contributes to provide income to gain international financial resources in order to support the Cambodian economy, and it can also improve the capacity and the skills of Khmer laborers after they return to the country.

“Nowadays, Cambodia is facing an increasing labor force which is estimated to be approximately 300,000 persons each year. The Royal Government has tried to deal with this labor force by attracting investors to Cambodia and by accepting graduates to work under this challenge. However, it is not enough; what is important is the involvement of the private sector.

“Obviously, besides about 500 garment and shoe factories which are employing about 500,000 laborers during the period of six months in early 2008, the Royal Government has gained US$1,000 million from foreign investment, which is US$300 million more than during the same period of last year. This number is not high enough for the Royal Government to solve the ongoing unemployment problem. However, the capacity and the quality of the laborers are also problems. The Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training shows that at present, there are 4,400 legal laborers from China, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Thailand in Cambodia.

“Nevertheless, Mr. Chea Mony, the president of the Free Trade Union of Workers of the Kingdom of Cambodia, disagreed that number of foreign laborers could become even higher, and he called on the Royal Government to carefully monitor this in order to uphold the state tax income and to follow the laws. On the other hand, the Undersecretary of State of the Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training, Mr. Uom Mean, evaluated it as a positive sign in the era of globalization, and the mutual exchanges of foreign labor is also showing the start of new developments in Cambodia – it is the use of human resources that have special skills.

“As for Mr. Sok Sina, a Research Associate of the Cambodia Development Resource Institute, he said that he welcomes only foreign laborers with special skills, because they can provide experience and knowledge to our Khmer laborers.

“According to the evaluation above, the quality of laborers is very important when seeking employment in the country, and also when considering to export labor to foreign countries.

“Mr. Rice Grand [phonetic], an expert in development skills in the International Labor Organization [ILO], said that Cambodia can export part of its labor force, but it is necessary to further extend training.

“The Secretary of State of the Ministry of Education, Youth, and Sports Mr. Pit Chamnan said that in 2010, the number of students attending higher education will rise to more than 230,000, for which better education is required. Mr. Jean-Boris Roux, the president of the French and Khmer Chamber of Commerce, acknowledged that educating students with different skills to meet the needs of the labor market is most important to develop the country.

“However, he acknowledged that there is some progress in education, but the quality is limited, making it difficult for different companies to find staff who has the needed skills and high capacity. On 13 June 2008, Samdech Dekchor Hun Sen, head of the Khmer Royal Government, instructed the Ministry of Education, Youth, and Sports to focus on education in the sector of mining and of energy, which will become an important labor market in the next few years.

“As for the exporting of laborers to foreign countries through the ITS and EPS systems [meanings not clear – any suggestions from our readers?], the Ministry of Labor has sent nearly 4,000 laborers to work in South Korea, more that 7,000 laborers to Malaysia, and nearly 20,000 to Thailand.

“Mr. Seng Sata, a department director of the Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training, said that the Ministry of Labor is contacting four other countries to find labor markets for Cambodian laborers who have the skills needed, such as in Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan, and Canada. At present, there are two organizations that help to develop national qualification standards, ILO and KOIKA of South Korea. Therefore, from now on, to meet the needs of local and foreign labor markets following the development of the country, Khmer laborers must develop to be laborers who have the respective capacities and qualities.” Kampuchea Thmey, Vol.7, #1681, 1.7.2008

Newspapers Appearing on the Newsstand:
Tuesday, 1 July 2008

Kampuchea Thmey, Vol.7, #1681, 1.7.2008

• Capacity and Quality Are Required at the Labor Market Inside and Outside of the Country
• Ieng Sary [former Khmer Rouge minister of foreign affairs] Is Seriously Ill so that He Could Not Sit and Listen during the Court Hearing [on 30 June 2008]
• The King Calls Citizens to Vote According to Their Own Conscience
• Cambodian Delegates Go to Attend the Annual Summit Meeting of the World Customs Co-Operation Council in Belgium
• Road in Front of the Royal Palace Blocked from Marching or Shouting by Political Parties
• Gold Sellers of Nine Stalls Robbed in Odongk Market, and Jewelries Worth about US$300,000 Were Taken [Kompong Speu]
• Thousands of People Revolted against the Chinese Police over One Teenage Girl’s Death [after police claimed that she committed suicide by drowning, while the people claimed that she was raped and killed by throwing her into a river by a son of a local official in Guizhou Province – 贵州省 (simplified) – 貴州省 (traditional)
• Mugabe Sworn in to Take the Position [of Zimbabwean president] after an Election Which Is Not Trusted Widely

Khmer Sthapana, Vol.1, #146, 1.7.2008

• Great Heroic King [Norodom Sihanouk] Warned Funcinpec [not to use his portraits for election propaganda – 30 June 2008]
• Chief of Stung Treng Forestry Officials Is Accused of Releasing Seized Wood of Seven Cubic Meters
  Youth Are Concerned about the Spreading of Drugs in Cambodia
• Cambodia Needs a Laboratory to Analyze How Many Elephants Are still Free in the Nature

Moneaksekar Khmer, Vol.15, #3500, 1.7.2008

• Police Are Busy with the Election Propaganda Allowing Merchants to Import Contraband into Cambodia Actively

Prachea Chun Khmer, Vol.15, #34, 30.7.2008

• Community Based Eco-Tourism Guarantees to Have Good Tourism Products [where the community created a tourist resort by using natural or cultural resources as the attraction, and people in the community can benefit from tourists by selling products created by them, moreover the natural and cultural resources of the community will be preserved with the strong involvement by people of that community]

Rasmei Kampuchea, Vol.16, #4629, 1.7.2008

• Thai Opposition Party [Democratic Party] Lodged a Motion against the Listing of the Preah Vihear Temple [as a World Heritage Site on 30 June 2008, as it cuts the wider environment off according to the map produced by Cambodia, without having national borders in the area clarified, which the 1962 International Court of Justice decision had left open, and recommended mutual clarification, which was still not done during the more than 40 years which passed]
• US Ambassador Admires Club of Cambodian Journalists for the Competition of Writing Investigating Articles [Mr. Om Layum from Rasmei Kampuchea ranks first, Mr. Leang Deluch from Cambodge Soir ranks second, and Mr. Ung Sophea also from Cambodge Soir ranks third]

Have a look at the last editorial – Preah Vihear still in the headlines – more information about Thailand’s and Cambodia’s documents.

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