On 21 December 2023, His Excellency SOK Chenda Sophea, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, received a courtesy call from 62 Cambodian awardees out of the total 80 awardees of the Australia Awards and New Zealand Scholarships Intake 2024, at the Ministry.

His Excellency Deputy Prime Minister congratulated the two groups of awardees who received scholarships to pursue their tertiary studies in Australia and New Zealand and encouraged the awardees to not just study hard but also return with in-depth knowledge and skills for contributing to the development of our nation. His Excellency Deputy Prime Minister advised the awardees to “try to know yourself well" meaning to know the history, culture, and civilization of Cambodia to be able to introduce to foreign students as well as Australia and New Zealand students. Meanwhile, His Excellency Deputy Prime Minister also further advised that the awardees are diplomats representing Cambodia and promoting "economic diplomacy" in disseminating the Cambodian products for trade and investment opportunities in Cambodia. 

The representatives of the two groups of awardees expressed their deepest gratitude to His Excellency Deputy Prime Minister for providing meaningful advice and also expressed their commitment to studying hard to obtain extensive knowledge of their expertise to contribute to the socio-economic development of Cambodia.