PhnomPenhPost-Feb 28, 2022
Total remittances from Cambodian migrant workers rose last year in spite of the continued economic crisis brought on by Covid-19, according to new figures from the labor ministry, while local wages and remittances exceeded a combined total of $6.7 billion. According to figures released at a meeting convened by the Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training to review 2021 results and set the agenda for 2022, 1.4 million domestic workers at the 13,571 enterprises registered in Cambodia received a total of $3.7 billion in wages in 2021, while 1.3 million Cambodian migrant workers sent a total of $3 billion in remittances back to the Kingdom, up from $1.2 billion in 2020. Sour added that the continued growth of the manufacturing sector – which includes the garment industry – has had a positive knock-on effect on other sectors such as construction and tourism, the latter of which faced a huge slump as a result of border closures during the pandemic. A report from the labor ministry reveals that there are 1,301,609 Cambodian workers overseas, of which Thailand is home to most at 1,220,197. South Korea came a distant second at 45,866. Other countries and territories with a sizeable Cambodian migrant worker population include Malaysia with 23,027, Japan with 11,453, Singapore with 821, Hong Kong with 202, and Saudi Arabia with 43. Read more at: https://www.phnompenhpost.com/business/labour-optimism-remittances-rise
