Indonesian Ambassador to Cambodia, Santo Darmosumarto, has hinted of potential cooperation in infrastructure and connectivity development in Cambodia following his meeting with Cambodian Minister of Public Works and Transport, Peng Ponea, in Phnom Penh on March 22, 2024.
The meeting occurred two weeks after a bilateral meeting between President Joko Widodo and Prime Minister Hun Manet on the sidelines of the ASEAN – Australia Special Summit in Melbourne on March 5, 2024, where the two leaders exchanged views on the potential for cooperation in infrastructure and connectivity.
Minister Peng Ponea highlighted Cambodia’s current priorities for waterways development and railway upgrading. He invited the Indonesian government and private sector to participate in these efforts.
Ambassador Santo expressed Indonesia’s commitment to further explore opportunities for Indonesian state-owned enterprises (SOEs) to engage in infrastructure development in Cambodia.
“Indonesian state-owned enterprises have valuable experience in infrastructure development abroad, recently in the Philippines and Timor Leste,” he said.
Ambassador Santo underscored Indonesia’s experience in railway development on Java Island and conveyed the potential for cooperation with Cambodia in this field. He added that the previous Cambodian Minister of Public Works and Transport, Sun Chantol, had visited the Indonesian railway manufacturing company, PT. INKA, in 2019.
Human resource development was also a topic of discussion, with Ambassador Santo expressing Indonesia’s intention to offer more capacity-building programs and scholarships.
This year marks the 65th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Indonesia and Cambodia. Ambassador Santo envisions transforming the strong historical ties between the two countries into tangible economic relations. The Indonesian Embassy will host an infrastructure investment forum in Jakarta in October 2024, aimed at promoting investment opportunities from Cambodia to Indonesia and vice versa.
