Cambodhrra Cambodian Partnership for Development Human Resource in Rural Area Association
December 1, 2023, with financial support from the Mekong River Land Governance Project (MRLG), the Finnish Church Aid (FCA) and the Danish Church Aid (DCA) in collaboration with partner organizations and private companies support agricultural sectors such as CACA, FNN, FCFD, FWN, WVI-C, CPSA, AFD, DPA, NGOF, Heifer International Cambodia, LWD, IIRR, World Renew, OREDA, KPY, DKT, SA, AMRU Rice, KOC, CACC, BAC, WWF Cambodia and SmartAgro organized the Agricultural Cooperative Business Forum on “Empowering Agricultural Cooperative for Inclusive Agribusiness Partnership” at the Cambodiana Hotel in Phnom Penh.
The forum was chaired by Mr. Van Liviriya, Deputy Director of the Department of Agricultural Cooperative Development of the General Directorate of Agriculture, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries; Mr. Chea Pisey, Deputy Director of the Department of Agro-Industry of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries; Mr. Guy Clarke, Country Director of DanChurch Aid (DCA), Mr. Oknha Hang Sokun, Chairman of the Board of the Cambodian Agricultural Cooperative Alliance, Mr. Nuon Tum, Representative of the Board of CamboDHRRA, Mr. Him Noeun, Secretary General of the CamboDHRRA. There were 185 participants attended the forum who representatives of government agencies include Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Ministry of Commerce and Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (MISTI), representative of ACs, union of AC and CACA, representatives of civil society and national farmers’ organizations, representatives from the private sector investing in agriculture and representatives of academia.
The Agricultural Cooperative Business Forum aims to:
• To learn and share, concept, legal framework, practical experience and challenges among key involved actors and stakeholders in inclusive agribusiness partnership in Cambodia.
• To identify key initiatives and find mechanisms and means to empower AC for inclusive agribusiness partnership in Cambodia.
As the result, the ACBF is very important event for ACs, private sector, financial institutions and stakeholders to promote inclusive business in Cambodia. Participants, especially agricultural cooperative leaders, gained knowledge, ideas, perspectives, and insight into legal frameworks, policies, and practical implementation of agribusiness partnerships in Cambodia. At the same time, ACs and stakeholders shared effective ways to enhance the role of contract farming in agri-business partnerships. Also, all stakeholders discussed specific challenges, activities and contributions of stakeholders to address current challenges. In addition, business matching between ACs, companies and financial institutions has also taken place, which encourages more and more efficient business partnerships.
Many thanks to the presidency, speakers and participants of this forum and for actively participating and sharing to promote the agricultural cooperative to actively participate in the agribusiness partnership.