China most important supporter of COVID-19 vaccines to countries in region: Cambodian survey

PHNOM PENH, April 30 (Xinhua) -- China is the most important supporter of COVID-19 vaccines to countries in the region, according to the results of a survey conducted in Cambodia and released this week.

The random survey was conducted online in this February on 100 Phnom Penh residents by Chheang Vannarith, president of Phnom Penh-based independent think tank Asian Vision Institute and a visiting fellow at Singapore based ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute.

"More than 90 percent of the Cambodian respondents perceive that China is the most crucial support in providing vaccines to the region," Vannarith said, citing the survey findings.

"And about 68 percent trust Chinese vaccines (Sinopharm and Sinovac)," he added.

Titled "Cambodian Perception of the New Chinese", the survey found that 53 percent of the respondents said the economic contributions of the new Chinese to Cambodia are rated "high" and 14 percent of the respondents said "very high".

"Clearly, the new Chinese are a fundamental economic actor in Cambodia, with some of them functioning as a bridge to connect Cambodia and China by attracting Chinese investors, tourists and donors, establishing companies that create job opportunities and incomes for the local people, and sharing entrepreneurship knowledge and skills," Vannarith said.

The new Chinese of Cambodia refer to Chinese migrants who arrived in the country after the 1990s, he said, adding that the survey is a pilot study and does not claim to be conclusive, and further surveys should be conducted in the future.