US-ASEAN Business Council Brings Business Delegation to Cambodia During its Chairmanship Year of ASEAN
(Phnom Penh) - On May 4-5, a delegation of 13 leading U.S. companies organized by the US-ASEAN Business Council arrived in Phnom Penh to engage with high-level Cambodian government officials and other stakeholders on expanding U.S.- Cambodia trade and investment ties. The delegation was led by Ambassador Michael Michalak, Senior Vice President and Regional Managing Director of the US-ASEAN Business Council, and William G. Lafferrandre, Senior Business Development Advisor of ConocoPhillips, Chair of the Council’s Cambodia Committee.
During its visit, the delegation consulted with the Royal Government on its efforts to promote best practices and technology in “digitalizing Cambodia” while strengthening existing industries and cultivating higher value-added industries and services. The delegation also expressed its support to the Royal Government’s efforts in its regional leadership roles, as well as domestic efforts to promote better governance and transparency, ICT development, and post COVID economic recovery.
“We are honored to have received a warm welcome by the Royal Government of Cambodia, especially and significantly so during its Chairmanship year of ASEAN”, said Ambassador Michael Michalak, “We have held productive discussions with our Cambodian counterparts and sought ways for U.S. companies to support Cambodia’s economic development. The Council is keen to use its expertise and partnerships to promote international investment, improve public policy engagement, and foster competitive Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs). This year’s mission serves to further reinforce the Council’s and our members’ strong faith in Cambodia’s economic growth potential.”
“We have been pleased with the constructive engagement we have had with various ministries in Cambodia on a number of important business issues, including ideas to unlock the significant energy resources in the overlapping claims area between Cambodia and Thailand in the Gulf of Thailand. Cambodia conveyed its commitment to making its foreign investment climate one of the best in ASEAN.” said William G. Lafferrandre of ConocoPhillips, Chair of the Council’s Cambodia Committee.
The delegation met with Prime Minister Hun Sen, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Aun Pornmoniroth, Senior Minister of Public Works and Transport Sun Chanthol, Minister of Commerce Pan Sorasak, Minister of Mines and Energy Suy Sem, Minister of Posts and Telecommunications Chea Vandeth, Secretary-General of the Council for the Development of Cambodia Sok Chenda Sophea, and other senior officials across key ministries. The delegation also met with the U.S. Embassy team led by Ambassador W. Patrick Murphy, and the Board of Governors of AmCham Cambodia.
Companies participating in the mission included 3M, Abbott, Amazon, Chevron, ConocoPhillips, ExxonMobil, Ford, Meta, Pernod Ricard, Phillip Morris, RMA Group, Roche, and Visa.