PHNOM PENH, Feb 24 — Malaysia, as a leader in the halal industry, will help Cambodia bring about a comprehensive halal ecosystem in the country, Senior Minister and Minister of International Trade and Industry Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali said.
He said that during the official luncheon hosted by Cambodia Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen, the Cambodian premier had conveyed his country’s wish to work closely with Malaysia in developing the halal industry and build a sound halal ecosystem to cater to the large Muslim population in the country.
There are about 800,000 Muslims in Cambodia.
“As the leader in the halal industry, we will do our utmost to facilitate Cambodia in this regard and help bring about a comprehensive halal ecosystem in the country that would serve to boost its economy and further work towards energising regional growth,” said Azmin, who is among the key senior officials in Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s official visit to Cambodia.
“Being among the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) participating countries, I highlighted that there are many areas of opportunity in strengthening our bilateral trade ties,” Azmin said via his official Twitter handle.
Hun Sen has indicated that further discussions with Cambodia’s Minister of Commerce Pan Sorasak are the way forward to deliberate on the areas for cooperation, according to the Senior Minister.
“He also proposed that Malaysian companies explore the possibility to invest in rice milling, considering that Cambodia is one of the best rice producers. I welcomed the idea as this would significantly increase our bilateral trade volume,” Azmin said.
Total Cambodia-Malaysia trade surpassed US$500 million (RM2.1 billion) in 2021, an increase of 13.14 per cent over the previous year.
Cambodian exports to Malaysia amounted to US$101 million in 2021, up 2.62 per cent from US$98 million in 2020, while imports jumped 16.16 per cent year-on-year to US$399 million from US$343 million the previous year. — Bernama
