Japan promises $100 mln of concession loan for Cambodia to reduce poverty

The Japanese government has pledged to provide 100 million U.S. dollars of concession loan each year for Cambodia to facilitate its poverty reduction efforts, said Prime Minister Hun Sen on Thursday.

The loan will be increased by one third on annual basis and the interest rate will keep as low as 0.01 percent, he told the construction ceremony of counter-flood facilities on the Tonle SapRiver bank in Phnom Penh.

Cambodia will pay it back in 40 years, he said, without giving other technical details of the loan.

"I urge the Cambodian government officials and the Japanese experts here to quickly take the loan to help and develop the poverty reduction projects," he added.

The loan deal was reached by both parties while Hun Sen paid his recent visit to Singapore to attend the ASEAN (the Association of Southeast Asia Nations) meetings.

International institutions have put the poverty rate of the kingdom at 35 percent.