Chinese Ambassador to Cambodia Wang Wentian (front L) and Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Prak Sokhonn (front R) exchange documents of a cooperation agreement in Phnom Penh, Cambodia on June 23, 2020. (Xinhua/Sovannara)

The 20 new projects in Cambodia will further contribute to a broad range of cooperation in the fields of rural development, water resources, agriculture, air connectivity, education, and cultural heritage among many others, according to Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Prak Sokhonn.

China provided 7.22 million U.S. dollars from the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation (LMC) Special Fund 2020 to Cambodia on Tuesday for implementing 20 projects in the kingdom.

Chinese Ambassador to Cambodia Wang Wentian and Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Prak Sokhonn signed the cooperation agreement on projects of LMC Special Fund in Phnom Penh.

Speaking at the signing ceremony, Wang said Cambodia had harvested the largest number of LMC Special Fund projects for three consecutive years, with 55 projects in total.

"This clearly demonstrates Cambodia's active participation in the LMC and shows that China-Cambodia cooperation under the Lancang-Mekong framework is very effective," he said.

"We hope that the smooth implementation of these projects will help improve the livelihood of Cambodian people and accelerate socio-economic development in Cambodia," he added.

Sokhonn expressed his sincere thanks to China for approving and financing additional new projects.

"These new projects will further contribute to a broad range of cooperation activities in the fields of rural development, water resources, agriculture, air connectivity, education, and cultural heritage among many others," he said.

Photo taken on July 13, 2017 shows an exhibition on economy and technology of LMC countries held in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. (Xinhua/Sovannara)

Since the launch of the LMC Special Fund in 2016, these projects have contributed to enhancing the socio-economic development of the Lancang-Mekong countries through narrowing development gaps, deepening mutual understanding and trust, and strengthening capacity to better respond to the needs of peoples, he added.

Sokhonn said despite the grave impact of COVID-19 crisis, Cambodia-China cooperation, bilaterally and multilaterally, has not lost any significance.

"Amidst this challenging time of global pandemic, our ceremony today is timely and of great significance to prove our resilience and to reaffirm our strong foundation of the LMC," he said.

China initiated the LMC Special Fund during the first LMC Leaders' meeting in Sanya of southern China's Hainan province in March 2016 with the aim of supporting the small and medium-sized cooperation projects put forward by the six Lancang-Mekong countries.

The six Lancang-Mekong countries include China, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam.