PHNOM PENH, March 20 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia's Ministry of Planning said COVID-19 will hinder a national development plan from upgrading the kingdom to become a higher middle income country, local media reported on Friday.
Speaking at the press conference here, General Director of Planning Theng Panha Thon said the COVID-19 will hinder a national development plan due to the budget crunch.
"I confirm the COVID-19 pandemic causes a negative impact to the Cambodian National Development Plan because all of the expenses earmarked for each ministry will be disbursed to fight COVID-19 and it will limit our budget for development," Panha Thon was quoted as saying by the Khmer Times.
"We had set to achieve our plan, however, it is now a priority to contain COVID-19, so our goal will not be fulfilled," he said.
In July last year, the Senate approved the 2019-2023 National Strategic Development Plan (NSDP) aimed to promote inclusive growth and work toward achieving the 2016-2030 Sustainable Development Goals. It also aimed to transfer Cambodia from a lower-middle income country to an upper-middle income country by 2030.
In order to have funding for the NSDP 2019-2023, the private sector will need to contribute 43.4 billion U.S. dollars, or 75 percent of the budget, while 14.3 billion U.S. dollars will come from the government.
Early this month, the Finance Ministry reported it accumulated about 400 million U.S. dollars in savings to be used during COVID-19 emergency cases in the kingdom. Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen also slashed government spending by at least 25 percent to save money amid coronavirus fears.
Centre for Policy Studies Director Chan Sophal said if the situation drags on, it will damage the economy and national strategic development.
"We cannot say about its obvious effect now. It depends on the situation of COVID-19 in Cambodia and in the region," he said.
