President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. on Thursday secured the commitment of several Cambodian business leaders to intensify their collaboration with the Philippine government in agriculture, digitalization, housing, nursing, and other fields.

Malacañang said the businessmen expressed their commitment to Marcos during a breakfast meeting at Hyatt Regency Hotel in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

"The identified areas of cooperation between the Philippines and Cambodia include agriculture (mechanization and food processing); micro, small and medium enterprises; energy; and low-cost housing," the Office of the Press Secretary stated.

"Collaboration in elderly medical care was also identified, particularly the hiring of Filipino nurses. Tie-ups on garments and traveling bag manufacturing were also mentioned in addition to digitalization for ease of doing business, as well as rice importation," it added.

Also during the meeting, Marcos vowed to boost local market development for both foreign and local investors and to cut down on bureaucratic red tape.

"We are encouraging not only foreign investment, but we are also encouraging local investment because we feel there is potential in the market," the President told the Cambodian business leaders.

"A hundred and seven (million) people is a big market and we have to develop that market. We have not developed our own markets. And I think that is another potential that we can exploit down the road," he added.

Promoting the Philippines as an "investment hub," Marcos invited businessmen to come to the country, highlighting the much-improved investment here.

"We would like to invite at the very least, for you to have a look at the opportunities that are available and finally I supposed at some point since we are not so far away, to come and we will explain to you exactly what we have done and why we have done it and where we have arrived in that process of transforming the economy," Marcos said.