The National Bank of Cambodia (NBC) has forecast that the Kingdom’s estimated economic growth will be 4 per cent in 2021, according to its Macroeconomic and Banking Sector Update 2020 report.
The prediction for positive economic growth is based on the efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines over the first half of the year.
During 2020, updates on the state of the nation’s economy, taking into account the devastation of the pandemic, had predicted an overall contraction of Cambodia’s economy of 1.9 percent.
The latest NBC forecast is in line with international financial institutions’ predictions for Cambodia’s economic growth in 2021. Those figures range from 4 to 6.8 percent.
“The prediction depends solely on the efficacy of the vaccines, the speed in recovery of Cambodia’s economic partners and the strengthening of our domestic economic foundation,” the NBC said.
It added that a continued strengthening in domestic economic activities will support and mitigate the impact on Cambodia’s economy from the slowdown of exports. The implementation of government policy promoting the development of small and medium enterprises, boosting innovation, and the use of technology in all sectors will be significant in strengthening domestic growth.
The central bank said agriculture will be the sector with the highest potential to offset unemployment and support the livelihoods of the poor. It also identified that speeding up economic diversification and its implementation throughout the industrial sector would help the country’s economy recover faster from the current crisis.
This article was first published in Khmer Times. All contents and images are copyright to their respective owners and sources.
