Cambodia, Vietnam to cooperate again on archives

PHNOM PENH, March 28 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia and Vietnam have endorsed a memorandum of understanding on cooperation in archives, initially established more than two decades ago, local media reported on Wednesday.

Chea Sophorn, secretary of state for the Cambodian Council of Misters, signed the agreement with Vietnamese State Record and Archives Department (VSRAD) General Director Tran Hoang during a ceremony at the council on Tuesday, reported Rasmei Kampuchea daily.

Under the three-point agreement, the VSRAD will annually welcome two officials from the National Archives of Cambodia (NAC)to be trained in document recording for a month in Vietnam, and provide nine Cambodians with archive management scholarships at secondary schools, tertiary institutions and senior level, the KohSantepheap daily reported.

VSRAD and NAC will also exchange technical documents on leadership principles, archives management and publications.

VSRAD will also assist the NAC in building an archives warehouse under a grant from the Vietnamese government.

"This is the second time that NAC has had a chance to cooperate with (Vietnam) on archives to share experiences and learn from each other," said Deputy Prime Minister Sok An while presiding the ceremony.

Vietnamese experts once helped train Cambodian officials in archives management and record taking between 1985 and 1986.

The NAC, which has been open to the public since 1993, is a member of the International Council of Archives, the Southeast Asian Regional Branch of the International Council of Archives (SARBICA), and the South East Asian Pacific Audio Visual Archives Association (SEAPAVAA).

The NAC will host the 11th meeting of SEAPAVAA in Phnom Penh at the end of August.