Cambodian Scholarship Students Hurt by Laos Currency Woes
One of the students’ allowances, worth $180, had halved in value because of inflation, he said at a graduation ceremony on Feb. 24. Photo: Prime Minister Hun Sen's Facebook
- By Romdoul Chetra
- February 25, 2023 2:21 PM
PHNOM PENH – Cambodian scholarship students in Laos have been hit hard by the depreciation of the kip currency and PM Hun Sen has called for talks to ease their hardship.
One of the students’ allowances, worth $180, had halved in value because of inflation, he said at a graduation ceremony on Feb. 24.
Hun Sen asked Minister of Education, Youth, and Sports Hang Chuon Naron to hold talks with Laos to provide the $180 allowance in dollars for both countries’ scholarship students.
He said both countries had agreed to provide the $180 on top of the scholarship amount given to each Cambodian student.
However, the Prime Minister had received many complaints from the students, who said they got less than the agreed amount.
Hun Sen said this was because Laos provided the allowance in kip which had fallen in value.
“I have proposed to the Prime Minister of Laos to provide the allowance in dollar currency instead, to avoid having any problems with currency exchange — Laos students to receive allowances in dollars and Cambodian students also in dollars,” he said.
Cambodian students in Thailand, China, Vietnam and other countries do not face this problem because the host countries are responsible for their welfare there, Hun Sen said.
