At
the second East Asia and Pacific Regional Conference on Poverty Reduction
Strategies held in Phnom Penh in October 2003, Prime Minister Samdech Hun Sen
said - “Poverty reduction defines and drives the substance, the content, the
heart and soul of our entire strategy of government. Poverty reduction is not
just a requirement of social justice, an action of conscience, but also of
pragmatic economic management.”[1]
In particular, the development of the rural economy was stressed as being the
“key” priority for government. Statements reinforcing the commitment of the
RGC to poverty reduction are welcomed in setting the NPRS at the heart of
government action. These statements must now be supported by clear action on the
part of Ministries and the RGC’s development partners.
The RGC is
to be congratulated for its work in preparing and finalising Cambodia’s first
National Poverty Reduction Strategy (NPRS). The NGO community believes that the
value of such a strategy will lie in its effective implementation and
monitoring.
It is now
one year since the RGC launched the NPRS. All
stakeholders now face the opportunity of assessing implementation of the
strategy over this initial period. In doing so, NGOs wish to offer their opinion
regarding progress on the NPRS and to suggest priorities and issues that should
be addressed in the forthcoming implementation period.
In working
towards a reduction in poverty in Cambodia, NGOs have a significant role to play
through their own activities. These practical experiences inform the assessment
NGOs make in relation to the NPRS, its implementation and future developments.
This NGO Statement sets out some of the most significant issues that NGOs in
Cambodia see as being of major concern at the present time.
It is
significant to note that all stakeholders appear to conclude that the RGC needs
to develop clearer priorities in relation to tackling poverty. The NPRS does not
offer an effective agenda for action. This
is demonstrated by the fact that the costed projects within the Action Plan
Matrix add up to $5.2 billion, far beyond the available resources or capacity. A
failure to prioritise the wide range and number of projects set out in the
matrix will allow donors to pick and chose projects. It leaves donors in control
when it comes to prioritising development work.
In
considering priorities for poverty reduction in Cambodia, it is also necessary
to look beyond the NPRS and take account of other generally agreed goals and
priorities such as the Millennium Development goals and Cambodia’s commitments
under various United Nations covenants and conventions, including the Covenant
of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the Convention on the Elimination of
Discrimination Against Women, and the Convention on the Rights of the Child. These commitments need to be integrated into the NPRS
framework.
This
statement is addressed to the RGC and donors in relation to the RGC’s first
Annual Progress Report on NPRS Implementation.
The aim of
the NGO community in producing this NGO Statement is to provide an NGO-based
response to the NPRS. The RGC is committed to participatory monitoring and the
NGO community wishes to contribute to that review.
In
the process of developing this statement, NGOs shared information and
experiences in response to the first year of implementation of the NPRS. A
number of meetings were held, and the opinions of NGOs were surveyed.
At
the same time, NGO sectoral groups have prepared sectoral papers and key
elements from these sectoral papers have also been fed into this Statement. The
collection of sectoral papers[2]
will be published separately from this Statement and will inform the NPRS
reporting process as well as be available for the next Consultative Group
meeting on Cambodia.
The NGO community would welcome any feedback on this Statement.