Founded on the belief that promoting revenue transparency in resource-rich countries is one of the fundamental building blocks for sustainable economic growth and poverty alleviation, the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) [1] was launched in Johannesburg at the World Summit on Sustainable Development in 2002. EITI aims to improve governance in oil, gas, and minerals-rich [...]
Many resource-rich countries have fallen prey to the natural resource curse [1]. But a handful of developing countries have managed to escape it. This note examines four resource-rich countries and the policies they have followed since the beginning of the 1970s. One, Nigeria, is a well-publicized case of oil wealth impoverishing rather than enriching the [...]
Phnom Penh, 18 July, 2007—The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors has reaffirmed its support for Cambodia’s reform effort by approving the Poverty Reduction and Growth Operation (PRGO). This is the first of three operations that focus on the “good governance” reform program laid out in the Government’s National Strategic Development Plan (NSDP), 2006-2010. Through [...]
The World Bank’s Cambodia office has organized consultations on its new Governance and Anti-Corruption (GAC) Strategy with four separate groups of stakeholders – government, donor, civil society, and private sector on January 11 – 12, 2007. These consultations were part of a very active on-going dialogue on these issues in Cambodia. The Government’s Rectangular Strategy [...]
Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights guarantees freedom of expression. Mr. Toby Mendel, Law Program Director of the international human rights organization, ARTICLE 19 Global Campaign for Free Expression, was invited by the World Bank to address a training seminar at the Ministry of National Assembly-Senate Relations and Inspection (MONASRI). The World [...]
The Ministry of Economy and Finance announced recently that the World Bank (WB) had provided loans and grant aid worth US$ 41.5 million to the Cambodian government for two projects: road construction and distribution of land to the poor, Rasmei Kampuchea reported June 15. The US$ 41.5 million agreement was signed between Finance Minister Keat [...]
French-owned petrochemical giant TOTAL and Chinese National Offshore Oil Corporation are likely to reach an agreement with the Cambodian government soon to drill offshore oil in the Kingdom. However, Te Doung Dara, secretary general of the Cambodian National Petroleum Authority, declined to comment on media that the companies were close to signing drilling contracts for [...]
The World Bank has held its first Social Accountability School in Cambodia. The school is one of the activities of the Program to Enhance Capacity on Social Accountability (PECSA). PECSA is part of the Demand for Good Governance Project (DFGG) now under preparation, which will be supported by the World Bank. The World Bank Newsletter [...]
The results of a study comparing the business environments of Cambodia’s ten most economically active provinces and municipalities were announced on October 26, 2006 in a seminar for 200 representatives from government, private enterprise, donor agencies and the media. This survey, the 2006 Provincial Business Environment Scorecard (PBES), is a joint initiative of the International [...]