(as prepared for delivery)

• H.E. Dr. Say Samal, Minister of Environment
• Excellency, Lok Chum Teav, Ladies and gentlemen

On behalf of USAID Cambodia, I want to thank everyone for their participation over the past two years and also today to develop the Environment and Natural Resources Code. I want to congratulate the Royal Government of Cambodia, especially the Ministry of Environment and the National Council for Sustainable Development, and other ministries for their commitment and effort to develop the Code. This has been a long process that has incorporated the voices of many representatives of government, NGOs, and civil society to ensure that Cambodia’s development considers the environment and natural resources management.

The Code embeds principles of sustainable development into all sectors of society and the economy. The Code applies across all institutions of government and creates a more unified systematic approach to handling all environment and natural resources conservation matters.

In anticipation of this workshop, I meet representatives from civil society, including NGOs, and I would like to share what I heard. They all appreciated the opportunity for civil society to participate in the Code drafting process. They confirmed that many of their comments and concerns have been incorporated in the current version. This highlights the Ministry of Environment’s engagement and willingness to listen to stakeholders from across Cambodia. Civil society members have raised the importance of aligning and deconflicting the Code with existing laws and regulations.  Further, they look forward to continued dialogue, with a defined role for civil society in developing new policies and regulations that support the effective implementation of this Code. But this work is not over and today’s event highlights the importance of continued engagement.

USAID is pleased to have supported the Royal Government of Cambodia to initiate environmental governance reforms to better manage and protect natural resources for sustainable economic development. 

Your Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, we are fortunate to live in country rich in natural resources and diverse ecosystems. We have gathered here because we know that Cambodia’s environment needs your attention, care, leadership and good governance to ensure it is protected and preserved and its resources extracted in a sustainable manner so that our children and grandchildren will have an opportunity to enjoy and explore from Cambodia’s forest, rivers and lakes.

Your contributions and comments are vital to ensure this Code is highly transparent and inclusive.

I would like to close with congratulations to the Ministry of Environment and the National Council for Sustainable Development for your leadership and coordination role in establishing this Code. I wish you all a successful workshop and fruitful discussions. This is just the beginning of a process that will benefit all. I look forward to your participation as we look to the future with adoption and implementation of this Code.

Orkun Chroeun.