Phnom penh: The World Bank presented its latest analytical findings on Cambodia's informal economy and business competitiveness to the Ministry of Industry, Science, Technology, and Innovation (MISTI), as part of its efforts to support the government's ongoing reform agenda.
According to Agence Kampuchea Presse, the analysis comes as a timely diagnosis as Cambodia advances key reforms. Minister of MISTI, H.E. Hem Vanndy, stated, "MISTI will relate this analytical work with our policy portfolio, including the draft MSME Development Strategy."
Ms. Tania Meyer, World Bank's Country Manager for Cambodia, reaffirmed the Bank's support for the Royal Government of Cambodia and underscored the importance of improving the business environment and developing the informal sector. She noted that the World Bank placed a special focus on the informal economy in its surveys for Cambodia.
The Bank's senior economist, Mr. Faya Hayati, emphasized that as a knowledge bank, their role is to support the government's reform agenda through evidence-based analysis. He highlighted that productivity growth is critical for Cambodia to achieve its Vision 2050 of becoming a high-income country. Currently, Cambodia's productivity growth stands at around 0.8 percent, whereas achieving Vision 2050 would require sustaining productivity growth of over 2 percent annually for the next 25 years, a feat previously achieved only by South Korea.
The discussion also highlighted findings from a special World Bank informal economy survey, categorizing informal firms into survivalist enterprises (41 percent), potentially viable enterprises (44 percent), and high performers (15 percent). The reports emphasized that reforms must be carefully targeted, combining social protection for vulnerable groups with stronger incentives, streamlined registration, and a more enabling business environment to help viable and high-performing informal firms transition into the formal economy.
Minister Vanndy invited the World Bank to develop concrete policy recommendations to support further discussions on actionable reforms. He also encouraged the Bank to align its next Development Policy Operation (DPO) with the government's reform agenda, particularly in supporting MISTI's mandate, including the implementation of the MSME Development Strategy and targeted measures to support the informal economy.