Cambodian parliament approves ministers for newly-split ministries

The National Assembly of Cambodia on Friday approved the appointments of ministers for the newly-split ministries - the ministry of industry and handicrafts and the ministry of mines and energy - despite ongoing boycott of parliament from the opposition party. The two ministries were last month split from the ministry of industry, mines and energy. Cham Prasidh, former minister of commerce, was appointed as the minister of industry and handicrafts, and Suy Sem, ex-minister of industry, mines and energy, was appointed as the minister of mines and energy. All 67 lawmakers of the ruling party, who were present at the session on Friday, unanimously voted for the appointments as the opposition's 55 lawmakers-elect have continued to boycott parliament in protest against the July's election results. Deputy Prime Minister Keat Chhon has said that industry and handicrafts have been largely contributing to social and economic development, adding that currently, there are about 500,000 small- and-medium-sized enterprises employing about 1.6 million people. For the industry, the country has about 890 large-scaled factories creating more than a half million jobs. In mines and energy, he said, these sectors would also provide huge benefits to economic development in the future.