Statement of Chairwoman
In 2022, the spread of Covid-19 was reduced significantly, which enables countries around the world including Cambodia to “re-open” their economy. However, the world economy could not grow as before the pandemic. Meanwhile, the world faced another geopolitical crisis – the war between Russia and Ukraine that spiked global inflation. This crisis caused some central banks of many countries such as the United States to implement monetary policy to reduce currency depreciation and increase the interest rate of central banks to reduce the inflation rate.
This global economic event also negatively impacted the Cambodian economy. Yet, because of the precise and accurate policy of the Royal Government of Cambodia in “re-opening” the economy and the rebound in tourism, the negative impact has been significantly reduced, which resulted in the growth of the Cambodian economy of approximately 5.2% in 2022. The growth was driven by the garment industry, service industry, and tourism.
In response to the situation of regional and local economics, CAMMA remained robust as illustrated in the Annual Report 2022. CAMMA still sustains its business operation through the implementation of its five-year strategy for 2020-2024. Technology and innovation are the foundations of CAMMA’s strategic plan. The digital loan was developed and tested in 2022. This loan product received remarkable support from clients because of the quick service, time-saving, and uncomplicated documents. Digital marketing was also developed to enable advertising in new digital trends. In our strategy, investment in human resources through skills development remained a top priority. Internal and external training courses were provided to staff of all levels. CAMMA’s branch managers were trained to strengthen managerial skills to manage the branch effectively and sustainably with codes of conduct and professionalism. In addition, 50% of credit officers attended the responsible lending training course organized by the Institute of Banking and Finance. To improve staff training, Camma Digital Learning Apps were also developed and released in 2022.
The full implementation of the Cambodian International Financial Reporting Standard (CIFRS) for SMEs and Cambodian tax standard allowed CAMMA Microfinance Limited to have been awarded the Tax Compliance Certificate type “Gold” with two years of validity for the tax year of 2023 and 2024. These milestones come from the clear definition of the vision, mission, core values, and strategic plan of the institution. Furthermore, this is the result of the hard work of the staff of all levels with ethics, professionalism, and integrity towards clients and the institution.
In the following year, CAMMA will continue to strengthen the digitalization strategy by implementing Loan Origination System and Contact Center System to increase the quality of our service and improve work productivity. CAMMA will further focus on providing loans to female borrowers according to its mission. We have accomplished this goal as shown in the increase in the number of female borrowers from 52% in 2020 to 59% in 2022. Additionally, CAMMA planned to release the Green Loan product to contribute to corporate social responsibility.
Year 2023 is the first year that I hold the position of Chairwoman of the Board of Directors of CAMMA. I would like to pay my gratitude and appreciation to Mr. Thun Vathana who successfully led CAMMA until now. I would like to wish him every success in his new role and duties.
As a Chairwoman of the Board for this new term, I am committed to leading CAMMA to sustainable growth and reaching the stated goals. I hope that members of the Board and staff at all levels would join me with determination and teamwork spirit in this journey. I hope that CAMMA will be even more successful in 2023.
Last but not least, I am deeply thankful to the management team and staff at all levels for their highly responsible and dedicated work in contributing to the mission of CAMMA. I sincerely thank the Royal Government of Cambodia, the National Bank of Cambodia, clients, and partners for their cooperation and support.
