On February 13, 2024, Samdech Moha Rathsaphea Thika Thipadei Khuon Sudary, President of the National Assembly, received a courtesy call with the German Parliamentary Delegation led by His Excellency Johannes Steiniger at the National Assembly Palace.
Hon. Johannes Steiniger praised Cambodia's rapid growth and stated that the visit aimed to strengthen the ties of friendship and cooperation between Cambodia and Germany, for both its legislative and executive branches.
During the courtesy call, the Chairman of the Delegation expressed deep appreciation for the ongoing cooperation between the parliaments of both nations, emphasizing the frequent exchanges to share insights and perspectives on parliamentary operations. His Excellency also informed Samdech Rathsaphea Thipadei, President of the National Assembly on the positive outcomes resulting from the delegation's working discussions with the representatives of the Royal Government of Cambodia regarding the potential enhancement and strengthening of cooperation across various sectors, including trade.
Samdech Rathsaphea Thipadei Khuon Sudary expressed her sincere gratitude for the visit of the German Parliamentary Delegation to Cambodia and considers the visit to be a valuable contribution to the promoting of the long lasting friendship and cooperation between the two countries, with the aim of fostering its continued growth and development.
The Cambodian National Assembly President said that the presence of the delegation came at a crucial time as the National Assembly and the Royal Government of the 7th Mandate have been in office for almost six months after the free and fair general elections held in July 2023. The elections was participated by 84.58% of the registered voters who choose their leader among 18 political parties competing in the election. As a result, two parties won the election, with the CPP gaining 120 seats while FUNCINPEC gained 5 seats in the National Assembly.
Samdech Rathsaphea Thipadei Khuon Sudary informed the Delegation that in this seventh legislature, the National Assembly and the Royal Government of Cambodia have joined hands with a determined commitment to prioritize citizens’ interests to promote the national economy, improve people's livelihood, and develop the country to become a high middle-income country by 2030 and a developed country by 2050. The President of the National Assembly expressed gratitude toward Germany for its continued support to Cambodia and stressed that the achievement that Cambodia has made is due to great effort and with the invaluable support from friends and development partners, including Germany.
The President of the National Assembly considered Germany to be a special partner that has always supported Cambodia to realize its development goals and aspiration, and expressed hope that Germany will continue to do so. Since 1992, Germany has provided approximately $843.6 million in grants and $35 million in concessional loans to Cambodia, with an average of around $38 million per year. The President of the National Assembly also expressed her heartfelt thanks to Konrad Adenauer Stiftung (KAS) and the German Cooperation for International Cooperation (GIZ) for their contribution to the capacity building of members of the parliaments and staff of the National Assembly’s secretariat. The President requested the two institutions to continue to support the National Assembly of Cambodia, in particular, through providing scholarships and training in IT skills so that the staff can provide better services to MPs in response to the actual situation and the vision of the Seventh Legislature in implementing an E-Parliament.
