Unofficial Translation

Selected Comments at the Groundbreaking of Fertilizer Factory at Kien Svai District of Kandal Province

24 December 2009

I would like first of all covey my heartfelt welcome to our Vietnamese guests – Mr Nguyen Sun Phuc, Minister in charge of the Council of Minister, HE Ambassador of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam to Cambodia and dear Vietnamese guests. Today I have a great pleasure to have returned once again to the district of Kien Svai in Kandal province for the groundbreaking of a factory that is to produce fertilizer in Cambodia, making it number seven of its kind only that this factory is the biggest and spending bigger capital for the first time in Cambodia, by the Five-Star International Agro-Fertilizer company from the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

Please allow me in the name of Samdech Chea Sim, Samdech Heng Saamrin and the Cambodian People’s Party as well as the whole people of Cambodia take this opportune moment to express my sincere thank to the people in Kien Svai as well as our people in the whole country who have cast their votes in support of the Cambodian People’s Party to go on with existing capability to set up its own Government without having to wait for a settlement of political impasse like in the previous terms in 1998 and 2003. With your support CPP have the ability to get things done with its two-third majority, and hence I have the possibility to shoulder with other leaders of the Cambodian People’s Party to continue to lead our nation and be here with you today.

Despite objective and subjective economic difficulties, CPP has striven to get the country going along in an atmosphere of peace and political stability, in absence of separation for all reasons and concerns of war destruction. This is a very important point. Take for instance, without peace and political stability this factory would not be able to take place here. Also, after the coup by Lon Nol against Samdech Preah Norodom Sihanouk, changing the country’s management system, war broke throughout the country.

Pol Pot toppled the Lon Nol regime and brought into power the regime of genocide. We have traveled together all along and changes have taken places in our country as well as in others. Loom at our neighboring countries, they do not have peace after a ruling party was overthrown by the other. Hence I would like to thank our people for voting the Cambodian People’s Party, whose campaign has been voting for CPP is voting for Hun Sen to be Prime Minister and vice versa.

HE Suy Sem, Minister for Industry, Mines and Energy and Mr Tran Van Moi of the Governing Board of the Five Star International Agro-Fertilizer company have already reported to you about this investment of agro-fertilizer and I have been impressed by the term they used “smart fertilizer” which means that the fertilize agent can adapt to soil requirement and condition, and I called that knowledge economy that is trend of the world progress.

The factory, after completion of the construction, would be putting out half a million tons per annum of fertilizer with the help of 500 workers after its initial stage of 35,000 tons per annum with about 300 workers. However, the impact we have would be far beyond that because its product is going to be of benefit to agricultural activities. Take for instance, Kien Svay district, which supplies various kind of agricultural produce to Phnom Penh city, would indeed consume a huge amount of fertilizer per year.

I have worked hard with HE Nguyen Tan Dung, Prime Minister of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), so as to bring about fruit of investment from SRV to Cambodia. We have processed over four months so to achieve an agreement between the two sides.

The Vietnamese investment projects need to have endorsement from HE Nguyen Tan Dung, whereas Cambodia needs to prepare necessary measures and study their impacts on environment and populated area as well. Among all, CDC, the final actor, approves the project that has been studied and proposed by the Ministry of Industry, Mines and Energy.

During my visit to Vientiane for SEA Games (South East Asian Games) opening, I had the chance to talk with HE Nguyen Tan Dung on the various Vietnamese investment projects in Cambodia, this project of fertilizer production is also included. We have reached various deals. For instance, the joint venture on national aviation, taking only two months to start business, with our prediction that the project would operate at loss for the initial two years. However, it has proven now that the venture is making profit already. We also have projects on banking and various others.

Tomorrow, accompanying by HE Cham Prasidh, HE Suy Sem and HE Chan Sarun as well as concerned persons, I will travel to Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh City to take part in a seminar on Dissemination of Information about (Vietnamese) Investment together with those companies from Vietnam and Cambodia. The two Prime Ministers will give speeches and sign some agreements as well as permissions for more investments.

Dues to financial crisis and economic downturn countries in the world have had to bear serious impacts whereas investments have been reduced. In the case of Cambodia, I could give my remark here that three countries have proven not only that their investments are not going down to smaller size but even up bigger – they are SRV, the People’s Republic of China, who have urged for bigger projects to take place, and the Republic of Korea, who have continued their projected investments.

Our people used to complain about cost of fertilizer and in some parts of our country, take for instance Banteay Mean Chey, use of fake or disqualified fertilizer has resulted in crop and soil damages. As is said by HE Suy Sem, in the whole country we have had, before this 65 million dollars to-be factory that produces 500,000 tons per year, only 10,000 ton product from 6 fertilizer producing places combined. So this factory has a high capacity in putting out fertilizer for local use. I hope that the factory will contribute to holding back use of foreign currency to purchase it from foreign countries, and also to prevent fake and/or disqualified products.

Use of fertilizer is for augmenting production. At the same time that we have campaigned that our people use composts and/or compost-based natural fertilizer in their production, it is true that use of natural or organic fertilizer alone at this time would not be sufficient for our vast need. That is why every year we have to import fertilizer from outside. The factory would solve this puzzle of fertilizer demand and also work for our people – those who work in the factory and those farmers who will be benefiting from the products in the course of performing their farming practices, which stay as core job provision not only for our country but most countries in the world.

Financial crises and economic downturn have had impacts on our young and recent industrial activities. This has indeed had impacts on workers, who have just come from agricultural sectors in the farming households. Because of a vast number of our population are farmers who provide major part of labor forces into newly developed industrial sector, in crisis that factories are closing down and/or suspending their productions, the Royal Government have provide key trainings that those who were suspended from or lost their jobs could use while returning to their families and go on with agricultural activities.

Potentially, agriculture provides opportunity for jobs for a vast number of population while, because of investment in and progress made in the previous years, development has been noticed from one stage to another. According to the report by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, our production figure, despite harm caused by Ketsana typhoon, could have recorded a surplus of three million tons or about two million tons of milled rice for export. In time of crises, last year I ordered all state institutions and ministries concerned to pay attention to dealing with food situation, in which we all did what we can to guarantee that our people did not go starving. I even said, we would not die from consuming less oil/gas but from hunger.

Gold is spreading on our land now. The price of rice has improved somewhat. This has made our farmers, about 80% of the whole population, happy, whereas a smaller fraction of our population who are government officials, traders would be less so as they would have to spend more on rice. This indeed puts the Royal Government in an awkward position as it has to play well for both sides’ benefit and favor.

Having said so, you may agree with me that Cambodia has got a bright future as a rice/food crops exporting country. On this front, take for instance, Vietnam exports an average five to six million tons per annum. Cambodia could potentially compete with Vietnam on this. Why? At the rate of two to three tons per hectare and only one time cultivation per annum, we have got the potential to export up to two or three million tons milled rice already. If we were to better provide irrigation, apply intensive farming techniques and double, income case triple, fold of cultivations, we would easily match with Vietnam’s.

Today we are here to talk about our achievement in fertilizer production, but in agriculture, we need to set as prime water for irrigation. You must agree with me that good seed and/or fertilizer would do us a great deal without water in the field. So in combination with good seed, growing technique and fertilizer, we need to settle first and foremost issue of water need for irrigation for our farmers. As far as cultivation area is concerned, we have enlarged it to about one million hectares already after another 70,000 hectares new rice field has been developed.

The question remained here is equipping the field with irrigation system with water. Currently we have expanded our irrigation capacity to about 43% or 44% of total land of cultivation. In this effort, the Royal Government of Cambodia continues to focus on infrastructural investment. For instance, during the visit of HE Xi Jinping, Vice President of the People’s Republic of China to Cambodia, we have signed a project on irrigation for farmers in Prey Veng and Battambang provinces. Let me have your attention that no matter how smart the fertilizer can be, the key issue is the provision of water.

The company is called Five-Star International Agro-Fertilizer – Cambodia. Having had similar sound I would like to share with you the news that yesterday HM the King has bestowed upon Samdech Akka Moha Dhmama Pothisal Chea Sim, Samdech Akka Moha Punnhea Chakrei Heng Samrin and me, the top rank in the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces – Five (Gold) Star General, for which I am so grateful to.

I do not have anymore serious political message but just a confirmation to our neighbors that in fact the “secret paper” has fallen into our hands a long time ago. The plan also includes that of 1.4 billion Baht loan to Cambodia and because we have learned that that we have decided to turn it back. It is up to them to decide what else they wanted to do and Cambodia will follow them always. They want to be good, Cambodia would do so and if they want to be bad, Cambodia has not other choice. However, bad is not what we want. We want good thing. But how could we stand idle when our neighbor is being smug with and plans destructive scenarios on Cambodia? I wish to affirm here that I have four more years in my mandate, which means quite a long time to serve my nation.

Within next years, we will have many sites of construction inaugurated – roads, bridges, etc. With rice production gives us a chance to maintain and increase exports, though in time of crises, our economy is advancing together with peace and political stability. We do not have red-shirted or yell-shirted issues at all. I would say you have made wrong study of the situation and despite there has a hint in that secret paper that a coup is not a possibility, getting rid of Hun Sen is not as easy as you think. I just want you to know I have the clue as to who would do that. Perhaps it is best to bother with only your internal affairs and leave Cambodia alone.

I have presented the secret paper we have received, especially the plan to have their opponents assassinated by end of 2009 or before April 2010, to HM the King so as HM could learn and be informed of nature and characters of leaders of our neighboring countries. Why can’t they forgive and reunite each others. I doubt if there has any Government in this world with such a treacherous plan like that?

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