Officials zero in on 19 products to make Cambodia competitive

PHNOM PENH, Aug. 14 (Xinhua) -- The Cambodian Commerce Ministry and U.N. Development Program have zeroed in on 19 Cambodian goods to promote for niche markets by improving production and packaging standards, local media reported Thursday.

These include 14 agricultural products such as corn, rice and livestock, and five service products, ranging from tourism to light manufacturing and labor, English-language newspaper the Phnom Penh Post said.

"We are promoting and developing a strategy to increase the quality and quantity of those products," Sok Darith of the Commerce Ministry's Trade Promotion Department was quoted as saying on Wednesday.

Cambodia's farmers and manufacturers are losing out to regional competitors who have higher quality goods and better business models, trade officials said.

Cambodia exports garments to the United States, European Union, Canada and Japan, but has failed to diversify its other sectors, with its agriculture bound largely for Thailand and Vietnam.

Editor: Yao