Phnom Penh: The World Bank has committed to working with other key development partners to work with the Royal Government of Cambodia to prepare an emergency response package to respond to the crisis more effectively.
This was stated by Ms. Tania Meyer, World Bank Country Director for Cambodia In a working meeting with Mr. Aun Pornmoniroth, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance, on April 21, 2026, on the assessment of the Cambodian economic situation in the context of the crisis and the Royal Government’s readiness to respond to the crisis.
During the meeting, Mr. Aun Pornmoniroth highly appreciated the good cooperation between Cambodia and the and the World Bank in the socio-economic development process of Cambodia at all stages and spoke about the important role of the World Bank, which is not only a strong traditional development partner of Cambodia, but also a Knowledge Bank that is rich in knowledge, skills and experience in all fields.
Regarding the response to past crises, Cambodia has considered and put in place a series of immediate solutions, starting from the outbreak of COVID-19, the problems along the Cambodia-Thai border and continuing to the current war in the Middle East, to reduce the negative impact on people’s livelihoods, business activities and ensure the socio-economic stability of Cambodia.
In particular, regarding the current war in the Middle East, which has seriously affected the sustainability of energy supply, the Royal Government has taken urgent measures, including assigning the state the burden of value-added tax on the supply of diesel fuel and LPG. This has caused the Royal Government to lose revenue while the Royal Government needs to use additional funds to support social protection work.
The Deputy Prime Minister also highlighted that the results of the study by the World Bank expert team are an important input covering both policy and financing aspects for the Royal Government to review and prepare a package of interventions, especially in response to the crisis, in a more targeted and comprehensive manner, with realism, solidarity and high efficiency, which will ensure the maintenance of Cambodia’s sustainable and resilient economic growth in the medium and long term.
At the same time, the World Bank Country Director for Cambodia also highlighted the World Bank’s commitment, in collaboration with other key development partners, to work with the Royal Government of Cambodia to prepare a package of interventions to respond to the crisis more effectively.
The Deputy Prime Minister reiterated his gratitude and highly appreciated the good cooperation between Cambodia and the World Bank and requested Ms. Tanya Mayer to continue to cooperate and discuss with the Ministry of Economy and Finance, development partners, and relevant parties to expedite the preparation of this special intervention package so that it can be implemented in the near future.
