(Phnom Penh): On February 10, 2026, H.E. Kuoch Soman, Secretary of State, representing H.E. Heng Sour, Minister of Labour and Vocational Training, presided over and delivered a welcoming speech at the opening ceremony of the "National Consultative Workshop on Economic Integration of Migrant Peoples and Post-Conflict Development Strategies" held at the Hyatt Regency Phnom Penh hotel, with the participation of many representatives from relevant institutions.

This workshop was organized with the aim of reviewing the progress of economic integration of returning people or former workers from abroad by evaluating the achievements, remaining challenges, and finding practical implementation pathways to integrate them more effectively into the labor market and the national economy.

On that occasion, His Excellency Kouch Soman highlighted the importance of adjusting economic perspectives in post-conflict border areas based on practical solutions to create a common understanding of obstacles and opportunities. The main goal is to transform these areas into high-productivity economic systems by promoting investment in agricultural processing, light industry, services, and increasing the workforce through Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET).

This important workshop was organized by the Cambodia Development Research Institute (CDRI) in collaboration with the Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA). In response to the return of workers from Thailand, the two institutes have collaborated to develop an intervention program for the integration of these returns, with the aim of shifting policy from humanitarian emergency response to economic integration and post-conflict recovery, especially in border provinces.

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