Cambodian PM Reaffirms No Budget Cuts from Education, Health for Military Spending

Prime Minister Hun Manet reaffirmed on the morning of July 21, 2026, that the state has no need to cut budgets from the education and health sectors to increase the military sector. His Excellency the Prime Minister stated that in the medium-term financial plan for 2027-2029, the growth of national budget investment allocated to the health and education sectors is increasing and not decreasing. Regarding the defense sector, which also needs to be increased, His Excellency asserted that the state has sufficient budget and has not yet needed to cut from the education and health sectors to meet the demands of the defense sector. Speaking at the graduation ceremony for students of South East Asia University in Siem Reap province this morning, His Excellency the Prime Minister emphasized that the government has always invested heavily in the education and health sectors. His Excellency the Prime Minister added that the government always considers human beings as indispensable resources for socio-economic development, striving to cultivate Cambodian citizens, especially youth and children, to possess broad knowledge with real skills, morality, and discipline, as well as their health, in order to better and more appropriately respond to the labor market and the defense of the motherland. According to the affirmation of His Excellency the Prime Minister, the Cambodian government in the 7th legislature will continue to accelerate the reform of the education and vocational training sectors in Cambodia to be more effective, efficient, and equitable, through the implementation of reform policies, strategies, and programs in all forms, aiming to harness the opportunities and benefits of Cambodian science and technology that are currently available. Source: Kampuchea Thmey Local