The Second Session of the Hungarian-Cambodian Joint Committee on Economic Cooperation (JCEC) was held in Budapest on January 9th 2024. The Session was chaired by H.E. Mr. Tristan Azbej, State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade and H.E. Mrs. Tekreth Kamrang, Secretary of State of the Ministry of Commerce of the Kingdom of Cambodia.
Hungary and the Kingdom Cambodia established diplomatic relations in 1956; Hungary’s Office in Phnom Penh opened on January 22nd 2019 as part of the Hungarian Embassy in Hanoi.
During the Second Session, the Sides discussed the current economic situation of their countries and several areas of cooperation included in the Agreed Minutes, with special regard to agriculture, water management, tied aid credit, and education reviewing the results and other potential opportunities in these sectors. H.E. Mr. Tristan Azbej was pleased to note the results of the first Hungarian-Cambodian Business Forum held in a hybrid format in 2022, where 25 Hungarian companies were represented.
The Co-Chairs welcomed the effective cooperation in the framework of the Stipendium Hungaricum Programme, which celebrates its 10th anniversary this year, with 30 scholarships per year for applicants from Cambodia to complete their higher studies in Hungary. The Sides also welcomed the cooperation in the field of water management, in which Hungarian expertise and innovation play a significant role. The commitment to continue the collaboration in the area of agriculture is well demonstrated by the fact that the Hungarian University of Agricultural and Life Sciences (MATE) has a decade long cooperation with the responsible Cambodian research institutes.
At the end of the Second Session of the JCEC, the Co-Chairs signed the Agreed Minutes and agreed to hold the Third Session of the Committee in Phnom Penh.
