Phnom Penh—On Tuesday of 11 September 2018, H.E. Ouk Samvithyea, Delegate of the Royal Government in charge as Director of the National Social Security Fund, presided over the workshop on the Best Practical Options for the Extension of Social Protection to Workers in the Informal Economy in Cambodia to be held at Himavari Hotel, Phnom Penh.
This workshop was participated by representatives of Ministry of Economy and Finance, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction, Ministry of Planning, General Department of Taxation, Department of Occupational Health and Safety, Cambodian Construction Association (CCA), Cambodian Federation of Employers and Business Associations (CAMFEBA), Garment Manufacturers Association in Cambodia (GMAC), European Social Protection Systems programme (EU-SPS), and Trade Unions amounted to approximately 50 participants.
H.E. Ouk Samvithyea said in the meeting that in response to social need and hopes of the Cambodian people, Samdech Akka Moha Sena Padei Techo Hun Sen, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Cambodia, issued the political program of the Royal Government of the 6th Legislature of National Assembly by focusing on the National Social Protection Policy Framework 2016-2025 for covering both informal and formal workers with the aim of receiving social protection from the Royal Government of Cambodia through the implementation of social security schemes of the National Social Security Fund (NSSF).
The Social Security Schemes provides numerous benefits to the Cambodian people, both formal and informal workers, in order to promote the labour productivity in Cambodia.
With the provision above, the economically active people are currently feeling warm because these social security schemes can ensure their income security when they sustain work injury, sickness, or other contingencies.
He added that the informal economy sector in Cambodia plays a vital role in promoting the national revenue.
In the meantime, some challenges related to piecework result in frequent movement from one workplace to another, unspecific documents, unskilled worker, low-wage, and daily high expense on family.
Sometimes, when informal workers encounter serious injury during working, they cannot afford the medical cost. Alternatively, the breadwinners face accident leading to disability or death resulting in the loss of household income and additional burdens of the family toward the poverty.
Therefore, NSSF collaborated with ILO for holding workshop in order to discuss with the specialists from ministries, institutions, and stakeholders for monitoring the construction site (The Olympia City of OCICI) and convene the tripartite consultation meeting with the stakeholders including Ministry of Economy and Finance, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction, Ministry of Planning (Department of Poor Households Identification), General Department of Taxation, Department of Occupational Health and Safety, Cambodian Construction Association (CCA), Cambodian Federation of Employers and Business Associations (CAMFEBA), Garment Manufacturers Association in Cambodia (GMAC), Companies involved with construction, Trade Unions, and development partners in a bid to collect significant inputs for the initial study before reaching to strengthen social protection coverage for the informal worker in Cambodia.
He strongly hoped that this discussion at this time would receive the productive results as expected for implementing social security schemes; furthermore, in order to have this work done successful punctually, he requested all stakeholders for continuing to collaborate and contribute to strengthen and extend social security schemes as planned.
