Cambodia Collects US$3 Billion as Tax Income in Ten Months
Phnom Penh, November 16, 2023 --The General Department of Taxation (GDT) has collected US$3,06 billion as tax revenue in the first ten months of 2023.The figure was released on Nov. 15 in a monthly meeting chaired by H.E. Kong Vibol, Minister Attached to the Prime Minister and GDT’s Director General.“The tax income collection in the ten-month period equals to 85.8 percent of the yearly budget plan,” H.E Kong Vibol said.In October alone, GDT generated some US$260 million from tax collection, he added, lauding the joint efforts of officials in collecting tax income efficiency.Modernisation has resulted in better rate of registration, improvement in taxpayer services and filing of tax returns in addition to the expansion of data storing facilities among other things, he said.The country has two institutions responsible for collecting taxes. One is the General Department of Taxation (GDT), which focuses on interior taxes such as income tax, salary tax, value added tax, and property tax, and the other is the General Department of Customs and Excise (GDCE), which collects taxes on goods entering and leaving the country.
Cambodia, Malaysia Boost Bilateral Cooperation on Sustainable and Resilient Tourism
Phnom Penh, October 09, 2023 --Cambodia and Malaya have discussed opportunities for cooperation in strengthening sustainable and resilient tourism with an aim of boosting the mutual flow of visitors.The discussion took place here recently between H.E. Sok Soken, Cambodian Minister of Tourism, and H.E. Datuk Eldeen Husaini Hashim, Malaysian Ambassador to Cambodia, pointed out a press release of the Ministry of Tourism issued this morning.On the occasion, H.E. Minister shared a new vision for the development of Cambodia tourism sector by highlighting the strategic initiative “BUILD + 3Ds”, with the aim of transforming Cambodia into a dynamic, competitive, sustainable and inclusive destination.H.E. Ambassador congratulated H.E. Minister for his recently appointment as the new Minister of Tourism and expressed his commitment to collaborate on the new vision. Both sides recalled the spirit of the meeting between Samdech Akka Moha Sena Padei Techo Hun Sen, former Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Cambodia and H.E. Anwar Ibrahim, Prime Minister of Malaysia during his visit to Cambodia in March 2023, which both leaders agreed to promote the development of tourism in both countries.In this regard, H.E. Minister and H.E. Ambassador further discussed the preparation of an action plan under the “Two Countries, One Destination” campaign; in particular, considered developing and promoting the two countries to become a common destination to attract Muslim tourists under the spirit of the Memorandum of Understanding on Tourism Cooperation in 2019.In order to implement the cooperation activities effectively, H.E. Ambassador invited H.E. Minister to visit Malaysia to exchange practical experiences with each other as well as strengthen friendship ties. Finally, both sides pledged to further enhance tourism cooperation and people to people exchange between the two countries.
Indonesia inaugurates high-speed rail with Chinese support
INDONESIA: Indonesian President Joko Widodo earlier this week presided over the inauguration of a new high-speed rail project worth $ 7.3 billion connecting Jakarta to the southeastern part of Bandung, Java. The high-speed rail project was jointly built by Indonesian and Chinese companies with a total length of 142 km and a maximum speed of 350 km per hour.The transport project is seen as a historic achievement under President Widodo's tenure and as part of China's "One Belt One Road" initiative, which has faced controversy since land grabbing construction was delayed due to the Kovid crisis and excessive budget requirements. According to a senior Indonesian official in charge of the railway project, all citizens will be able to try free travel on the high-speed rail line until mid-October.