Economic slowdown to further limit new jobs in Cambodia

Wednesday, May 07, 2008

PHNOM PENH, May 8, 2008 (Xinhua via COMTEX) -- -- An average of 250,000 new workers entered the job market each year from 2003 to 2007, but only an average of 150,000 new jobs were created in each of those years, the Cambodia Daily newspaper reported Thursday.

The number of jobs created annually peaked at 200,000 in 2005 and 2006, though 2007 saw a sharp decline to about 115,000 new jobs created, and further economic slowdown is expected to keep the number low for 2008, Sok Hach, director of the Economic Institute of Cambodia (EIC) was quoted as saying.

The World Bank is aware of the glut of new workers, said Senior Country Economist Stephane Guimbert, and in cooperation with the government, the bank is exploring ways to create about 250,000 new jobs per year.

By the end of the year, Guimbert said, the World Bank will submit an analysis to the government on ways to tackle the unemployment issue.

Meanwhile, the Cambodian Ministry of Labor is also training workers to better meet the demands of the local and overseas job markets, ministry Undersecretary of State Oum Mean said.

Oum Mean said the nation's unemployment rate remains low because of an informal, unregulated labor market, which he said employs millions from motorbike taxi drivers to street vendors.