PHNOM PENH, Jan. 16 -- Cambodia and the International Labor Organization (ILO) on Thursday launched a new project to expand job services and improve labor market information with funding from China, according to an ILO media statement.

The ILO/China South-South Cooperation Project to Expand Employment Services and Enhance Labor Market Information in Cambodia and Laos was the first ILO project supported by China in Cambodia that focuses specifically on improving job services, the statement said.

"The project aims to improve labor market efficiency and participation, reduce unemployment, and enhance the flow of information between job-seekers and employers," it said.

The 3-year project is expected to improve the quality of job services and make the existing job centers in Phnom Penh Municipality and the provinces of Battambang, Siem Reap, Kampot and Svay Rieng more client-oriented.

"The project will also encourage the development of relevant work programs for specific groups such as women, migrant workers and people with disabilities," the statement added.

"Enhancing productivity is key to economic growth and poverty reduction," Pich Sophoan, secretary of state of the Cambodian Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training, said when addressing the launching ceremony. "The South-South Cooperation project will help Cambodia to achieve and sustain economic growth and translate that growth in the creation of more and better jobs."

Lu Xiaoping, deputy director-general of the Department of International Cooperation of the Chinese Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, said at the ceremony this project was a platform for mutual collaboration and she was confident that through joint efforts, the project would achieve a success.

"China supports and promotes this South-South cooperation initiative and finds it to be a powerful means to combat poverty by enabling the country to invest in their own economic and social development," she said.

Officer-in-Charge of the ILO Country Office for Thailand Cambodia and Laos Maurizio Bussi said the Cambodian Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training and the National Employment Agency would be the lead agencies implementing the project.

"They will undertake activities to support job creation, provide employment services to job-seekers and ensure regular dissemination of labor market information," he added.