Prime Minister Hun Sen yesterday assured the public the Kingdom is not facing insolvency despite the economy contracting for the first time in three decades last year.

Cambodia has deployed around $3 billion in reserve funds for relief during lockdowns, cash assistance, medical equipment and other necessities, the prime minister said during a meeting of the National Committee  for Combating Covid-19.

More than 1,000 new cases were confirmed yesterday and the Ministry of Health warned that the country is at a “red line”. Any further escalation or increased transmission of the “Delta” variant could result in a second round of lockdowns. The quarantine period for those testing positive for Delta and Delta Plus variants has been extended to 21 days.

“No country seems to have avoided community transmission, even North Korea,” the prime minister said.

He stressed the government would continue caring for financially vulnerable families and business sectors affected by the crisis. He also said the government will continue paying state salaries to civil servants and armed forces bi-monthly as usual.

The 2021 national budget allocated $719 million for pandemic-related relief and recovery intervention, compared with $823 million in 2020.

The Kingdom spent 1.4 percent of its gross domestic product (GDP) on a social security net, Moody’s Analytics reported last month, adding it doled out more than any other country in ASEAN in its relief to the vulnerable during the pandemic in relationship to its GDP.

The government has spent more than $335 million in direct aid to more than 700,000 households during the pandemic.