Roland Eng

Roland Eng (born 1959) is a Cambodian politician and ambassador. He has served as Cambodian ambassador to Thailand Malaysia Singapore and the United States of America.

Roland was sent to France to pursue his education in 1968. Three years later in 1971, Roland's father disappeared, his mother, five sister and two brothers when the Khmer Rouge invaded Cambodia. In 1979, Eng joined King Norodom Sihanouk as Private Secretary and the following year he graduated with a Degree in Public Administration from Université Paul Cézanne Aix-Marseille III. Ambassador Eng’s career in the public service commenced during some of the most turbulent times in Cambodia’s history. As Private Secretary to His Majesty King Norodom Sihanouk of Cambodia from 1979 to 1981, he later joined the Royalist Movement for more than a decade along the Thai-Cambodian border and actively participated in the making of Paris Peace Agreement, which established the United Nations Transitional Authority of Cambodia (UNTAC) in 1992. He participated actively in the Paris Peace Agreement which established UNTAC, the United Nation Operation in Cambodia, He was subsequently appointed by His Majesty the King as rotating Ambassador of the then Supreme National Council of Cambodia (SNC) to the United Nations and later on ran as a candidate for Member of Parliament for Kampot province for the FUNCIPEC party and subsequently became the country’s first Minister of Tourism in 1992. He was then appointed as rowing Ambassador to the UN for the SNC (Supreme National Council of Cambodia).

Ambassador Roland Eng served as Cambodia’s Ambassador to the United States from 1999 to 2005. Prior to his posting in Washington D.C., he was Ambassador to Thailand with concurrent accreditation to Malaysia and Singapore from 1994 to 1999, where he re- established Cambodia’s diplomatic relations with these countries following several years’ hiatus.

Before his appointment as Ambassador, he was Cambodia’s first Minister of Tourism in 1992-1993. During his tenure, he modernized and transformed Cambodia’s nascent tourism sector, turning its Tourism Authority into a full-fledged Ministry with clear vision and mandate in developing the country’s tourism.

Ambassador Eng contributed several articles on development, conflict resolution and other topics. Among his recent works is “Creating Local-Level Stability and Empowerment in Cambodia” in “Human Security for All: A Tribute to Sergio Vieira de Mello” (Fordham University Press, 2004).

Ambassador Eng is fluent in Cambodian, French, English. He is actively involved in various Foundations and NGOs and is currently President of the Angkor Photo Festival. He also sits on the Advisory Board of Anjali House, a Siem Reap-based non-profit organization that provides free food, healthcare and education to under-privileged children. Ambassador Eng also serves as board of director of Friends of Khmer Culture (FOKCI), Sobbhana Women’s Foundation, Jay Pritzker Academy (JPA), the Angkor Photo Festival....