PM Hun Manet to Inspect Health Centers Following 24-Hour Service Claims

Prime Minister Hun Manet has announced his intention to personally inspect several health centers to verify reports that nearly 100% of health centers nationwide are operating 24 hours a day to provide healthcare services to the people. Prime Minister Hun Manet instructed Minister of Health, Cheang Ra, to guarantee the accuracy of this claim, stating that he would personally visit health centers to check if they are indeed operating 24 hours a day. This statement was made during the official inauguration ceremony of the Khmer-Soviet Friendship Hospital in Danko District, Phnom Penh, on the morning of September 16, 2026. The Prime Minister emphasized that the government has achieved significant results during the three years of the 7th mandate. Specifically in the health sector, the government has set a goal to provide 24-hour healthcare services at health centers. To support the 24-hour service operation, a total of 522 medical professionals, including doctors, nurses, and midwives, have been recruited and deployed. This includes 82 civil servants and 440 contract workers. According to the report from the Minister of Health, 99.3% of health centers nationwide are operating 24 hours a day, an increase of 47.7% compared to the previous mandate, where just over 50% operated 24 hours. The remaining approximately 0.7% of health centers, as stated by Minister of Health Cheang Ra, are affected by border conflicts between Cambodia and Thailand, and are not yet operational. The Prime Minister stated that these are the fruits of the government's policies, representing tangible results on the ground, not just policy statements. He further highlighted that the government's policies and strategic plans in the health sector adhere to an approach of strengthening the health sector from the grassroots up to higher levels, and diversifying capabilities from higher levels down to the grassroots. Strengthening the health sector from the bottom up, he explained, involves focusing on enhancing the capacity of local healthcare providers, from health posts and health centers to district referral hospitals. Meanwhile, strengthening specialized capacities that require significant investment, such as cancer treatment, cardiac care, and other specialized fields, will be organized from the national level to regional and provincial levels, due to the extensive resources, long training periods, and utmost attention to quality required in these areas. Prime Minister Hun Manet considers investment in the health sector as an investment in the lives, labor force, human resources, and the equitable and sustainable development of the nation.