(Phnom Penh)

On June 10, 2024 at the Palais du Gouvernement, H.E. Chhieng Yanara, Senior Minister in charge of Special Missions and Second Vice-Chairman of the Council for the Development of Cambodia (CDC), presided over, in collaboration with the United Nations Resident Coordinator (UNRC), the Multi-Stakeholder Kick-Off Meeting on the 4th Global Partnership Monitoring Round for Effective Development Cooperation. This meeting was attended by high-level representatives of Parliament, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MFAIC), Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF), Ministry of Interior (MoI), Ministry of Planning (MoP), Ministry of Women’s Affairs (MoWA), Ministry of Environment (MoE) and Cambodian Investment Board (CIB), among key development actors including bilateral partners, United Nations Country Team (UNCT) and civil society.

Cambodia has long been engaged in strengthening effective development cooperation through development cooperation strategies (2014-2018 and 2019-2023) and recently formulated, endorsed Development Cooperation and Partnerships Strategy (DCPS) 2024-2028. Being committed to monitoring the impact of country’s development cooperation, Cambodia has partaken in all three past Global Partnership Monitoring Rounds (2014, 2016 and 2018). For the Global Partnership Monitoring Round 2023-2026, Cambodia is one of the 56 countries that participate, launching the monitoring exercise through the Multi-stakeholder Kick-off Meeting. In preparation for data collection phase, the meeting aimed at 1) launching the monitoring exercise, 2) leading the process and 3) identifying roles/responsibilities. 

Drawing upon the end results of monitoring exercise, efforts to strengthen development cooperation are outlined as follows:

1. A Commitment to Development Effectiveness Principles: Participants reaffirmed their commitment to effective development cooperation, recognizing the importance in achieving the global agenda: Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This commitment enhances mutual accountability and actions for results.

2. Towards Enhanced Stakeholder Engagement: The meeting highlighted the importance of diverse development actors’ different but complementary roles including the Royal Government, parliament, development partners and civil society. Commitments were made to foster collaboration and participation to ensure accurate, comprehensive data collection.

3. Follow-up Actions: The meeting emphasized the importance of follow-up actions beyond the Multi-Stakeholder Kick-off Meeting in order to sustain momentum, collect data, disseminate results, reflect and transition to action as well as implement recommendations emerging from the monitoring exercise.

The Multi-stakeholder Kick-off Meeting culminated in a collective commitment by all development actors to undertake a robust monitoring exercise, reinforcing Cambodia’s commitment to effective development cooperation and sustainable development.