PHNOM PENH, Dec. 4 (AP) - (Kyodo)—International aid donors opened the annual Consultative Group meeting here Thursday to decide on the level of aid disbursements to the country for 2009.
More than 100 representatives from 16 donor countries, including Japan and the United States, and from seven international financial organizations such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund are participating in the forum and are expected to make aid pledges at the end of the two-day meeting.
The group has met annually since 1996, and as of today, Cambodia has received foreign aid worth more than $3 billion, an average of $500 million per year -- accounting for almost half the government's annual budget.
Last year, Cambodia appealed for $600 million, but the donors pledged an aid package up to $690 million for 2008.
This year, however, due to the global economic crisis, Cambodia is seeking less aid.
Prime Minister Hun Sen, in his opening address to the group, promised that his government will tackle several hot issues including corruption, judicial reform, land disputes, and good governance, all of which have been often cited by the donors as areas of concern.
Last week, Global Witness, a London-based environmental advocacy group, urged international donors to use their leverage over Cambodia to bring about improved governance and transparency in Cambodia's petroleum and mining sectors.
"Cambodia is on the verge of a petroleum and minerals windfall, but both sectors are already exhibiting early warning signs of the corruption, nepotism and state capture which plagued Cambodia's forest sector," Global Witness said in a statement.
A day before the meeting, opposition lawmakers issued a statement calling for the government, donors and key development partners to strictly use the Joint Monitoring Indicators, which are agreed tools to measure progress in the implementation of strategy for growth.
The statement by the lawmakers of the Sam Rainsy Party said the government must adopt a long-awaited anti-corruption law and take concrete measures to stop grave violations of Cambodia's laws and serious violations of human rights, and take further steps toward strengthening a true system of checks and balances to uphold democratic principles.
Cambodia is one of the world's poorest nations, with some 35 percent of its 14 million people living below the poverty line, defined as earning less than $1 dollar a day.
More than 100 representatives from 16 donor countries, including Japan and the United States, and from seven international financial organizations such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund are participating in the forum and are expected to make aid pledges at the end of the two-day meeting.
The group has met annually since 1996, and as of today, Cambodia has received foreign aid worth more than $3 billion, an average of $500 million per year -- accounting for almost half the government's annual budget.
Last year, Cambodia appealed for $600 million, but the donors pledged an aid package up to $690 million for 2008.
This year, however, due to the global economic crisis, Cambodia is seeking less aid.
Prime Minister Hun Sen, in his opening address to the group, promised that his government will tackle several hot issues including corruption, judicial reform, land disputes, and good governance, all of which have been often cited by the donors as areas of concern.
Last week, Global Witness, a London-based environmental advocacy group, urged international donors to use their leverage over Cambodia to bring about improved governance and transparency in Cambodia's petroleum and mining sectors.
"Cambodia is on the verge of a petroleum and minerals windfall, but both sectors are already exhibiting early warning signs of the corruption, nepotism and state capture which plagued Cambodia's forest sector," Global Witness said in a statement.
A day before the meeting, opposition lawmakers issued a statement calling for the government, donors and key development partners to strictly use the Joint Monitoring Indicators, which are agreed tools to measure progress in the implementation of strategy for growth.
The statement by the lawmakers of the Sam Rainsy Party said the government must adopt a long-awaited anti-corruption law and take concrete measures to stop grave violations of Cambodia's laws and serious violations of human rights, and take further steps toward strengthening a true system of checks and balances to uphold democratic principles.
Cambodia is one of the world's poorest nations, with some 35 percent of its 14 million people living below the poverty line, defined as earning less than $1 dollar a day.
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