-    Excellency Bin Troachhey, Minister of Planning 
-    Mr. Andreas Zurbrugg, Head of Development Cooperation, Australian Embassy
-    Representatives of national and provincial departments of planning
-    Excellencies,  Colleagues, Ladies, and Gentlemen.

Good morning!

Cambodia was making steady progress towards the achievement of its Sustainable Development Goal #1 (End poverty) and SDG #2 (End hunger, achieve food security and nutrition). However, like many countries, it was significantly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Ministry of Planning’s IDPoor system has proven a critical foundation and an enabler for social protection, providing needed assistance, mitigating shocks for poor and at-risk households, strengthening resilience and safeguarding economic gains achieved over the last two decades. This was corroborated by independent evaluations commissioned by the Government and various development partners. 

In the Pentagonal Strategy Phase 1 (2024-2028), human capital development and strengthening the social protection system stand out as a key priority (Pentagon 1). As such IDPoor is/ and will be constantly evolving in methodology, scope and digital transformation to respond to the needs and changes in context and achieve the Strategy’s ambition.

To support the Government’s efforts in developing the IDPoor System, UNDP under the DFAT-funded Resilience Facility, in collaboration with GIZ, has provided both technical and financial support to the Ministry of Planning to develop the On-Demand IDPoor, which was rolled out in 2020, expanding as such the IDPoor System and developing needed capacity at national and sub-national levels to ensure the On-Demand IDPoor is smoothly and successfully implemented.

One important building block in such a system is the availability of a stakeholder feedback mechanism. As such, the Ministry of Planning, DFAT, GIZ and UNDP have been working together since 2023 on developing the IDPoor Monitoring, Suggestions and Objections Mechanism to nurture public confidence, give voice to beneficiaries, enhance transparency and ultimately improve and streamline the IDPoor’s operation and performance.

It is my pleasure to be here with you today to celebrate the Launch of the IDPoor Monitoring, Suggestions, and Objections mechanism and witness the first training on its Standard Operating Procedures.

Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, 

The IDPoor System is a hefty endeavor and a great responsibility. Hence, allow me to take this opportunity to express my sincere appreciation to the Ministry of Planning, under the leadership of Excellency Bin Troachhey, for the continued partnership and diligent work. We, as UNDP, value this long-standing partnership and reconfirm our unwavering commitment to continue working with the Ministry to accelerate the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals. 

In this connection, I would also like to commend DFAT for its contribution to enhancing socio-economic resilience in Cambodia. The Resilience Facility is a pioneer and anticipatory mechanism that allows us to manage risks and complex uncertainties.     

Last but not least, kudos to the IDPoor Department the UNDP and GIZ technical teams who provided their support throughout this process.

I wish you all a good continuation.

Som Arkun/Thank you!