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Samdech
HUN SEN Message Rising again in the beginning of 1979 from nearly four years of almost total destruction of social and economic institutions and decimation of manpower, Cambodians have displayed tremendous resilience and have come a long way in rebuilding capacities and institutions. Successive governments have guided and steered this process. Beginning in 1998, the Royal Government has achieved and ensured steady peace, without any internal conflicts of the past. With unflinching commitment to basic principles of governance and human development oriented emphasis on progress the Royal Government has ensured robust growth in all spheres. When one starts from below ground zero, as Cambodia did, with urgent and pressing priorities to be met in every sphere of human activity, any investment, indeed any expenditure, contributes one way or the other to growth. Having achieved stable growth for a number of years successively and successfully, Cambodia has gained confidence and is now poised on an important threshold in its journey into the future. Cambodians have reached a crucial platform and look to their future with optimism and hope. The choices we make and the steps we take now will determine whether we have used this moment of opportunity and made a positive contribution in the next decade of development. It is time now to make the choices and take the first steps with a clear focus, conviction, and a strong sense of purpose. Poverty levels in Cambodia have registered a significant decline since 1993, in those parts, which were surveyed then. Such decline has occurred mainly through widespread economic growth. The latest survey figures highlight the areas of still lingering poverty needing focused attention and targeted action to reach Cambodia Millennium Development Goals (CMDGs) in reducing poverty. It is time now that resources begin to be properly directed and effectively used to maximise benefits for the disadvantaged and the deprived to lift them into the mainstream. Consolidating and building on the achievements of the past, the Royal Government is committed to achieving the human development oriented CMDGs by 2015 through a Rectangular Strategy following the Triangle Strategy of the Royal Government for well-orchestrated attention to, as well as investment and growth in, priority sectors. Social and economic growth should be equitable, and opportunities and benefits affordable and accessible to all, both geographically and between the rich and the poor. We shall use scarce resources for the maximum benefit of all Cambodians, particularly the poor, and not leave investment in the public sector to the choices of others. The Royal Government gratefully acknowledges that our progress since 1993 has been made possible largely by generous financial and technical support from our external development partners. We are very thankful to them. However, much of the external resources in the past had been used directly by the providers on programmes and activities of their choice, outside government purview or scrutiny. A large share has also been spent on intangible items like technical assistance. In the future however, the Royal Government will take full charge of the entire process and ensure that all resources, government and external development partners', are clearly directed to priorities and sectors chosen by the government. It will further pursue to ensure that the highest proportion of external funds is used as 'resource transfers' for development. The National Strategic Development Plan (2006-2010), has been formulated using the comprehensive Rectangular Strategy of the Royal Government of Cambodia and synthesises various policy documents (Cambodia Millennium Development Goals, National Poverty Reduction Strategy, National Population Policy, etc) and through extensive consultations were also held among all stakeholders. It provides the framework and compass for growth, employment, equity, and efficiency to reach CMDGs and well-focused and directed future equitable development, pro-poor and pro-rural. It will take the country on an assured growth path, at once sustainable. It lays out the vision, goals, strategies and priority actions for the next five years. It makes balanced, realistic and feasible allocations to various sectors on a priority basis. Its implementation will be closely and regularly monitored to make annual adjustments. The Royal Government recognises the crucial necessity to install and strengthen proper institutions of governance, processes and procedures through well thought out reforms to ensure sustainable development. But Angkor Wat was not built in a day. Nor can destroyed institutions of Cambodia be rebuilt overnight -- economic, social, government, financial or others. But step-by-step, steady progress has started at a rapid pace not witnessed elsewhere in the world. Actual implementation of reforms and practice of laws and procedures would over time imbue the entire system with best practices and cement and solidify various institutions essential in any democracy as has happened elsewhere in the world, albeit over a much longer period. NSDP is a blue print for further progress on building the edifice of a new Cambodia, and is the single, all-encompassing RGC document for the next five years. I urge and expect all government agencies and external development partners to strictly adhere to the priorities set out in the NSDP.
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