AKP Phnom Penh, May 12, 2021 --

Khmer Enterprise (KE), a unit under the Ministry of Economy and Finance, and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) have entered into a strategic partnership to accelerate the operational development of Cambodia’s small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and e-Commerce sector.

The new partnership between KE and UNDP aims to support the sustainable development of SMEs and e-Commerce in Cambodia, thus serving as a catalyst for SMEs to boost their online presence, provide new services and identify avenues to conduct international trade, according to a press release on May 11.

On Dec. 23, 2020, UNDP and the Royal Government of Cambodia through the Ministry of Commerce (MoC) joined forces to form one of the key components of Cambodia's e-Commerce acceleration project.

The joint partnership aims to boost domestic and international opportunities for SMEs through a digital platform and create over 1,000 new jobs by 2022. In this joint initiative, 125 small and medium-sized businesses are expected to gain grants and training in e-Commerce through a co-funding from the MoC, the Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF), the Australian Government, and UNDP.

With this new partnership and additional funding from KE, the project is now expected to scale up to support an additional 50 SMEs in two project activities, including an incubation programme (equipping SMEs with the necessary skillset and readiness support) and a small grants programme (supporting digitalisation transformation).

This partnership will strengthen the existing capacity of both technical and financial support by bringing together the local community network connection and international expertise. It will also encourage innovative ways of programming for the whole ecosystem; through support from the private sector and international development agencies to assist micro, small, and medium-sized enterprise (MSMEs) and the e-Commerce sector in Cambodia.

“The COVID-19 pandemic poses a very unprecedented advantage for policy-makers and ecosystem builders to keep SMEs afloat and thrive. Given the difficult circumstances caused by Covid-19, through this programme partnership, qualified SMEs will have various opportunities to receive grants that are provided by Khmer Enterprise. This programme structure offers efficient mechanisms to provide funds and able to train SMEs to go digital. Such intervention will contribute to the acceleration of the Royal Government’s Rectangular Strategy for promoting digital economy,” said Dr. Chhieng Vanmunin, CEO of KE.

The partnership also reinforces the shared efforts between UNDP and KE in previous collaborations such as the Bluetribe Programme, to improve the SME ecosystem by providing technical and financial support to SMEs in priority sectors, he said.

“Together with Ministry of Commerce, UNDP is keen to support KE’s work in furthering a digital and e-Commerce based economic transition. This provides micro and small businesses the opportunity to grow faster, provide more jobs and prosperity, and do so with greater protection against COVID-19,” said Mr. Nick Beresford, UNDP Resident Representative.

(Photo: UNDP)

By Chea Vannak