Friday, 16 July 2010

NZ experts help Cambodian officials improve governance

http://www.radioaustralianews.net.au/

via Khmer NZ

Experts from New Zealand are in Cambodia to help train government officials to improve transparency and management of the kingdom's oil and gas sector.

Officials from Crown Minerals, part of New Zealand's Ministry of Economic Development that manages its government's oil, gas, coal and mineral resources, have been sharing their knowledge.

Caroline Rowe, a senior legal and risk adviser at Crown Minerals, says the World Bank-sponsored course allows New Zealand to share its experiences with Cambodia.

The Phnom Penh Post says Crown is offering advice with officials from the Cambodian National Petroleum Authority and the Finance Ministry's tax department.

This year, the issue of transparency in the sector has become subject to increased scrutiny.

The AFP newsagency says concerns about extractive resource revenues arose in April, when the Anglo-Australian mining giant BHP Billiton announced that it was under investigation by the US securities and exchange commission.

The investigation was probing possible violations of anti-corruption laws that many thought related to Cambodia.

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