PHNOM PENH, Sept. 25 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia on Wednesday launched a five-year project called RiceTechCambodia, aiming at promoting the development of organic rice production in northeastern Mondulkiri province.
Cambodian Agriculture Minister Veng Sakhon attended the launching ceremony of the project, which will be implemented by SanoRice, Amru Rice, Oxfam, Development and Partnership in Action, Larive International and the Provincial Department of Agriculture of Mondulkiri with the fund from the Netherlands Enterprise Agency.
"The project aims to improve the livelihood of small-scale farmers by helping them to have organic rice certified, increase their productivity, enhance their yield and ensure premium price to the market in Europe," Sakhon said.
The minister said the project will be implemented in a remote area of Mondulkiri province aiming to reach out to 2,400 small-scale rice farmers.
He added that 1,300 farmers will receive extensive training on organic agriculture and good agricultural practices while getting access to drying, storage and milling facilities, to increase the quality of rice products.
Cambodia is an agrarian country with approximately 80 percent of the population being farmers, and the kingdom produced about 10.8 million tons of paddy rice in 2018.
The country exported some 342,045 tons of milled rice during the first eight months of 2019, a government report said, adding that China is the biggest buyer of the country's rice.
