S Korea ready to assist ‘digital government’effort in Kingdom

THE “Cambodian Digital Government Policy 2022-2035” was approved earlier this year, and is expected to link the Kingdom under the three foundations of Digital Citizens, Digital Government and Digital Businesses.

In a December 9 meeting with Rho Hyunjun, country director of the South Korean International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), Chea Vandeth, Minister of Posts and Telecommunications, outlined plans to implement the policy, and asked the agency to support a web portal project designed to provide public services.

Vandethspokeaboutdecentralisation work at the sub-national level, and how it will require extensive preparations. An extensive fibre-optic infrastructure will need to be completed and shared with all communes, as will a restructure of some government institutes. In addition a national web portal will need to be developed. A portal is a specially designed website that brings information from diverse sources – like emails, online forums and search engines – together in a uniform way.

Hyunjun welcomed the opportunity to cooperate with the telecommunications ministry and support the design of the national web portal.

So Visothy, secretary of state at the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications, told The Post: “The 20222035 policy was approved at the start of the year, and we are in the process of preparing it. The South Korean government has assisted with the establishment of operations centres.”

“We will need partners like KOICA to build the digital government, along with the participation of all of our development partners,” he said.

Visothy explained that South Korea has been of great help with the process. It was involved in drafting the policy, and thanks to more than 20 years of managing its own digital government has been able to share its own experience and best practices. KOICA also helps train officials, through the Academy of Digital Technology of Cambodia (CADT).

The digital policy reflects a longterm vision of the government and will serve as a road map to achieve the digital government revolution, said a January report.

Short-term, medium-term and long-term priority activities have been organised in a cellular and comprehensive manner in line with the advancement of digital technology, the development of Cambodia and the national and international best practices.

The same report said through the Inter-ministerial Committee in charge of drafting the Digital Economy Policy Framework and the Digital Government Policy Framework, Prime Minister Hun Sen has assigned the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications to lead preparation of the policy.

“It is aimed at promoting the connection of digital infrastructure at the sub-national level, from the capitals and provinces to communes, such as commune administrations, police stations, schools, health centers and towns, to support digital public services and online education and training, online health counseling and diagnosis, digital technology adaptation of citizens and information on markets and agricultural products,” it added.

“There is still a lot of work to be done, including the establishment of digital revolution units in ministries and institutions, headed by a secretary of state who is a member of the Digital Government Commission,” Visothy said.