High U.S. tariffs hurt Cambodian garment sector

PHNOM PENH, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- High U.S. tariffs are hurting Cambodia's garment sector, with the industry complaining that high import costs and a slowing U.S. economy could sink the Kingdom's key industry, state media reported Tuesday.

In 2007, Cambodia paid 419 million U.S. dollars in tariffs on 2.46 billion U.S. dollars worth of exported goods, meaning the industry is paying an average 17 percent tariff, the Phnom Penh Post said, citing a new report by the Progressive Policy Institute, a centrist U.S. think tank.

The average U.S. tax on imports is 1.3 percent, while Saudi Arabia pays only 0.1 percent on the goods it exports to the U.S., the Post said.

Cambodia has already seen a 500 million U.S. dollars drop in exports to the U.S. in the first eight months of this year compared to the same period last year, said Kaing Monika, externalaffairs manager at the Garment Manufacturers Association of Cambodia (GMAC).

He added that the sector has suffered a loss of about 20,000 workers.

Garments have been hard hit by the U.S. slowdown, with clothing sales down in 2008.

Cambodia sells about 70 percent of its clothing to the U.S. market, making it highly vulnerable to fluctuations in the U.S. economy and Washington's trade policies. Read more!

Free breakfast on menu for Cambodia school kids

By KER MUNTHIT

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — The U.N. food agency is resuming free breakfasts for hundreds of thousands of poor Cambodian schoolchildren after securing new funds for a program suspended due to high food prices, the agency said Tuesday.

Under the revived scheme, 450,000 schoolchildren in the countryside will be fed meals in classes before starting their daily lessons.

The new school year started Oct. 1, and food distribution is now under way for students in 1,344 rural schools in 12 Cambodian provinces, said Bradley Busetto, acting director of the U.N. World Food Program in Cambodia.

The program costs about $9 million per year, or about $20 per child, he said, adding that its resumption was made possible by donors responding to a recent WFP appeal.

The WFP was forced to suspend the school meals program in Cambodia in May due to high food prices. Its local suppliers defaulted on contracts to provide rice because they could get higher prices elsewhere.

Busetto said he was still concerned about the impact of high food prices on Cambodia's poor.

But "at the moment, we've managed to resume and we're hopeful that we can maintain this program through the entire school year," he said. "We're very happy about that."

The breakfast includes rice, sardines, yellow split peas, vegetable oil and salt — food items to help alleviate nutritional deficiencies among the rural population.

Rural Cambodian school teachers said the program, which started in 2000, has made children visibly healthier and improved their ability to learn.

At Sangkum Seksa School, about 40 miles west of Phnom Penh, principal Tan Sak said he was waiting for the food deliveries.

"I have already told my students to bring their plates and spoons next time they come to classes," Tan Sak said by telephone. "They are delighted."
Read more!

Senior opposition party leader defects to Cambodia's major ruling party

PHNOM PENH, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Keo Ramy, vice president of Cambodia's second largest opposition party, here Tuesday defected to major ruling Cambodian People's Party (CPP).

"I decide to join CPP after I have opposed it for over 20 years," said the 45-year-old former leader of the Human Right Party (HRP). "We have opposed CPP for our whole lives, but we will not win CPP."

"We can see that through the general election on July 27. CPP won 90 of the 123 seats at the National Assembly. More (and more) people support CPP and I follow the decision of people," he added.

During the election, HRP won three seats, but Ramy failed to secure a seat as candidate for the Phnom Penh electoral constituency.

Ramy once served the co-ruling Funcinpec Party and the major opposition Sam Rainsy Party and later joined his friends to establish HRP.
Read more!

Cambodia Tourism-Peak Season: Bayon Heritage Travel and Tours ready to serve

2008-10-07 06:56:05 - Ministry of tourism has proposed a news tourism slogan-Visiting Cambodia, Kingdom of Wonder- which reflects the tremendousness of Cambodia's tourism...

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Kontaktinformation:
Bayon Heritage Travel and Tours

#14 Eo, Street 51( Pasteur), Beong Keng kang I, Khan Chamkarmorn, Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
Tel: (+855)-23 997 178 / 353 598
Fax: (+855) - 23 223 299
www.tourismindochina.com

Kontakt-Person:
CHHEM Samnang
Author
Phone: +855 92 53 43 66
E-mail: e-mail

Web: http://www.tourismindochina.com
Presse-Information:
Bayon Heritage Travel and Tours

#14 Eo, Street 51( Pasteur), Beong Keng kang I, Khan Chamkarmorn, Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
Tel: (+855)-23 997 178 / 353 598
Fax: (+855) - 23 223 299
www.tourismindochina.com

Kontakt-Person:
CHHEM Samnang
Author
Phone: +855 92 53 43 66
E-mail: e-mail

Web: http://www.tourismindochina.com Read more!