Yang Saing Koma, secretary of state at the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, headed an August 3 meeting to form an inter-ministerial committee which will be tasked with the implementation of agriculture production promotion and the search for new markets for farmers.
Saing Koma announced via social media that the committee will look into establishing mechanisms to stabilise the prices of agricultural products, especially through $100 million funding which will be used to buy farmers’ products at suitable prices.
“This is crucial work. We must work with the new government to develop the agriculture sector, ensure food security and protect the livelihoods of the people,” he said.
On August 2, Saing Koma was in Kampong Cham province’s Cheung Prey district, where he met with commune-based agriculture experts. He encouraged the experts to work closely with farmers on rice growing in this rainy season, and hoped they would contribute to ensuring global food security
He said demand for rice is high in more than 100 countries around the world, which could drive the price of rice up and provide good opportunities for Cambodian farmers to increase exports.
“We plan to deploy agriculture official to each commune where people grow rice. There are around 1,000 such communes throughout the country. The official will support farmers on rice growing, rice quality and reducing production costs,” he explained.
“We will also designate communes where rice will be produced primarily for export. This will contribute to promoting farmers’ competitive capacity in the rice sector,” he added.
