Asian Development Bank gives $230m to Cambodia

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) on Thursday signed up to provide 230 million U.S. dollars to Cambodia for six development projects, aiming at promoting inclusive growth and reducing poverty in Cambodia, according to the bank's media statement. The financing agreements were inked between Eric Sidgwick, country director of ADB to Cambodia, and Cambodian deputy Prime Minister and finance minister Keat Chhon. The 230 million U.S. dollar assistance includes 218.46 million U.S. dollar concessional loan and 11.7 million U.S. dollar grant, the statement said, adding that the six projects are focused on education, decentralized public service and financial management sector, economic diversification promotion, flood and drought risk management and mitigation, power sub-transmission line construction, and Southern economic corridor town development project. "The assistance demonstrates an excellent partnership between Cambodia and ADB," Keat Chhon said at the signing ceremony. "The financing support to these projects is a timely response to our need for development in the current global context to achieve high economic growth and forms the basis for long-term development." To date, he said, the bank's cumulative amount of project loans and grants extended to Cambodia has reached 1.85 billion U.S. dollars, of which ADB has financed 1.5 billion U.S. dollars as loans for 63 projects and 350 million U.S. dollars as grants for 33 projects. "This has contributed considerably to the development of Cambodia," the minister said. Eric Sidgwick said the projects would improve the quality of life for poor and vulnerable people, further develop the economy by helping the government roll out a series of policy reforms and measures to expand trade and investment, diversify the country's economic base, and help transform Cambodia into an open and market- based economy. "They reflect ADB's ongoing efforts to achieve inclusive growth through harnessing the synergies between a range of interventions," he said.