Chinese investment welcomed, but with proper regulation
August 24, 2018
Cambodia should continue to welcome the massive amounts of investment coming from China, but it should also redouble efforts to control that inflow of money by putting in place effective and far-reaching regulation, pundits said on Wednesday.

Speaking at a discussion organised by the Khmer Times, Mey Kalyan, senior adviser to the Supreme National Economic Council, said Chinese investment, in principle, is good for the country, but the government needs to seriously consider its impact on society.

“In theory, Chinese investment is good and we welcome it. However, large investments over a short period of time could have negative consequences for the country.

“For instance, if there are too many Chinese investors in the coast, particularly in Preah Sihanouk province, local people may not be able to live there. It is a problem that we need to consider,” Mr Kalyan said.

“We saw a lot of investment from China in the coastal provinces, but we don’t know their long-term plans. We must come up with strategies to manage this investment to avoid problems in the future,” he said.

A possible course of action would be to hold government-level talks with China to jointly look for solutions to some of the challenges that large investments may present, Mr Kalyan said.

The government should also begin to “filter” investments, carefully deciding which projects create positive change, and which ones could have a negative impact on society, he said.

Finally, Cambodia should strive to diversify the sources of foreign investment, moving away from the current situation, where one country dominates the investment market, according to Mr Kalyan.

“We must diversify the sources of investment and our trade. We should not allow just one country to dominate investment in the region and in the country,” he said. “Cambodia is small, but we have to keep our country safe, prosperous and independent.”

He said Cambodia is not a unique case, with Chinese investment reaching all corners of the globe due to Chinese president Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road Initiative, which seeks to put China at the center of a global trade network.

According to government data, from January to June, Chinese investment was worth $5 billion, making China the biggest investor in the Kingdom. Chinese investors are involved in almost every economic sector, from energy to infrastructure, and from tourism to real estate and finance.
https://www.khmertimeskh.com/50526190/c ... egulation/

waste of time, like speaking to a brick wall, one must be willing to buy, the other willing to sell, for the price to rise, or else its just wishful thinking on one's part only