Phnom penh: The Ministry of Industry, Science, Technology and Innovation (MISTI) organised the 1st Business and Supporting Industry Potential Forum to underscore the importance of strengthening domestic supply chains and enhancing Cambodia's SME sector as a catalyst for industrial transformation.
According to Agence Kampuchea Presse, the forum attracted approximately 250 participants, including potential investors from the Oknha Association of Cambodia, industry leaders, multinational firms, local manufacturing enterprises, private sector representatives, development partners, and policymakers.
H.E. Hem Vanndy, Minister of MISTI, highlighted the central role of SMEs in economic diversification, job creation, skills development, entrepreneurship, and technological creativity, which are crucial for the growth of a dynamic economy.
Discussions at the forum focused on three key pillars: identifying high-potential businesses, fostering supply-demand linkages by matching businesses to complement and substitute imports, and improving the broader business ecosystem and regulatory environment to support industry growth.
Minister Vanndy noted that while Cambodia's economy shows promising industrial potential, a lack of data and understanding among stakeholders has hindered the conversion of opportunities into tangible benefits.
MISTI has pinpointed potential products in seven key sub-sectors that offer immediate market opportunities and strategic relevance for strengthening domestic value chains and backward linkage industries. These sectors include textiles, food and beverages, rubber and plastics, chemicals and daily-use products, automotive and electronic parts, packaging and labeling, and furniture.
The forum also aimed to encourage Cambodian investors to enter higher-value manufacturing, strengthen supply-chain linkages between SMEs and large factories, promote technology adoption, digitalisation, and industrial machinery upgrades, and advance standards compliance such as ISO, GMP, and GHP to prepare SMEs for international market entry.