Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen said on Tuesday that China has arranged vessels to freight raw materials for garment and footwear productions to Cambodia from now until May.

Speaking at a university graduation ceremony in Phnom Penh, Hun Sen said the first shipment arrived on Monday, and the second one will arrive Tuesday. "The vessels will deliver raw materials to Cambodia from this March until May-until the situation (of COVID-19) has eased."

The prime minister said due to a shortage of raw materials from China caused by COVID-19, some factories in Cambodia had partially suspended operations, affecting almost 20,000 workers.

"We are very thankful to the Chinese Ministry of Commerce for helping to push for the fast delivery of raw materials to Cambodia," Cambodian Industry and Handicraft Ministry secretary of state and spokesman Heng Sokkung told Xinhua.

Sokkung said the sincerely mutual help between Cambodia and China has showed the world that "a friend in need is a friend indeed."

He said the fast delivery of raw materials to Cambodia came after a delegation of the Chinese Ministry of Commerce visited Cambodia recently and met with Cambodian Minister of Industry and Handicraft Cham Prasidh.

He added that during the meeting, Prasidh presented a list of "necessary raw materials" that Cambodia is facing a shortage for the garment and footwear industry.

He added that the minister also initiated a "Green Lane" to facilitate and speed up shipments, logistics, and customs processing clearance, so the raw materials could be reached Cambodia faster.

The Garment Manufacturers Association in Cambodia said in a statement last month that more than 60 percent of the raw materials for productions in the garment and footwear industry are imported from China.

Due to the COVID-19 epidemic in China, factories producing raw materials had been temporarily suspended and the suspension has affected the supply chain for factories in Cambodia, the statement said.

The garment and footwear industry is Cambodia's biggest export sector, employing about 750,000 people in approximately 1,100 factories and branches, according the Labor Ministry.

The sector earned gross revenue of 9.32 billion U.S. dollars last year, up 11 percent compared to the year before.