Jean-Daniel Gardère
Jean Daniel Gardère (b. 1942) is a senior French civil servant and economic advisor to the Ministry of Finance who, later in life, became a writer, museologist, and exhibition designer specializing in the economic and monetary history of Cambodia.
He visited Cambodia for the first time in 1968, at a time he was based in Singapore on a diplomatic mission at the Economic Commission for Asia and Far East (ECAFE). He certainly fell in love with the country but his professional involvement in France and abroad in the promotion of foreign trade and in the publishing industry, as well as the deteriorating situation in Cambodia, prevented him to come back before 1991.
It was not until 2005 that he was able to return to Phnom Penh for an extended period, initially serving briefly as head of the French Economic Mission for Cambodia and Laos, and subsequently as an advisor to various private companies. While continuing his research into Cambodia’s economic history, he also wrote and produced films and publications for the National Bank of Cambodia (NBC).
From 2012 onwards, he served as a special advisor, concept designer, and project manager for the NBC, spearheading several major educational initiatives: the creation of the SOSORO Museums of Economy and Money—first in Phnom Penh in April 2019, followed by locations in Battambang and Kampot scheduled to open in late 2026 and 2027 — with the Phnom Penh site set to undergo significant expansion and be complemented by additional facilities in 2028.
Publications
- Money and Sovereignty: an exploration of the economic, political and monetary history of Cambodia, [Monnaie et souveraineté: Éléments pour une histoire économique, politique et monétaire du Cambodge], Phnom Penh, National Bank of Cambodia, 2010, 728 p. [FR/ENG]
- Les voies du Cambodge — Croissance et défis [1998 – 2013], Phnom Penh, National Bank of Cambodia, 2013.
- Une histoire cambodgienne: Les 4 vies de l’étonnant M. Keat Chhon, Paris, L’Harmattan, 2016, 512 p. ISBN 978−2−343−08655−2.