Vijian Paramasivam
As Cambodia moves decisively towards a Fourth Industrial Revolution-based economy, women’s digital literacy emerges as a key concern. The government, private entities, and academic circles alike recognize that empowering women with digital skills is not just a necessity but a vital investment in the increasingly digitalizing economic landscape.
Chea Ratha, Under Secretary of State for the Ministry of Industry, Science, Technology and Innovation, emphasized the government’s commitment towards boosting women’s digital literacy. Speaking at a panel discussion titled: “Digital Inclusion: Empowering Women and Overcoming Divides” hosted by AmCham Cambodia.
“We are working on building a strategic framework to engage, equip and empower women to participate in the digital economy. We need to reskill and upskill women so that they can be involved in the digital economy,” she said.
Read more: Women entrepreneurs in Cambodia request easier access to finance and formalization
Ratha also mentioned some of the ongoing efforts aimed at creating a more digital-inclusive society, such as the Go Digital Cambodia programme and the STI Roadmap 2050. However, she acknowledged that the lack of infrastructure is still a significant challenge. “Go Digital means we must have internet and high-speed internet across the country but we are still lacking the infrastructure,” she confessed.
Urgent need for digital literacy
The Cambodia Women Entrepreneurs Association states that women own 61 percent of SMEs, a figure that compares favorably with many of Cambodia’s ASEAN neighbors. However, despite this robust involvement in the economy, many women are hampered by a lack of digital literacy and access to finance. Manu Rajan, CEO of Wing Division, voiced his concerns at the panel discussion.
He explained, “A large number of women are driving the economy but mostly in the informal sector. Some are not registered entities and due to multiple reasons they do not have access to finance and cannot expand their businesses.”
Rajan also underscored the gender disparity when it came to mobile technology, highlighting, “In our business, we noticed that more than 50 percent of Wing customer base are women but only 35 percent have a mobile app. Only 30 percent own smartphones despite having 100 percent smartphone penetration in Cambodia.”
Public-private partnerships are increasingly being seen as a viable solution to bridge this gap. One such collaboration involves Visa (Cambodia), the National Bank of Cambodia, and the Ministry of Women’s Affairs. They have initiated a two-year flagship programme, “Promoting Financial Literacy for Women and Women Entrepreneurs”, targeting the economic empowerment of rural young women, entrepreneurs, and students.
Promoted from the school level
Ivana Tranchini, Visa country manager, echoed this sentiment, noting the importance of addressing gender equity and advocating for conscious efforts in recruitment and panel discussions.
“What we need to do is to be more conscious and hold ourselves accountable — things like insisting on discussion panels that we have parity, different perspectives from a gender point of view. In recruiting, we must have different gender representation,” she remarked.
The panelists concurred that digital literacy needs to be promoted right from the school level, with a special emphasis on STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) education. Rajan affirmed, “STEM education needs to be a focused effort and focused inclusion, it has to start from schools, like training the teachers.”
As Cambodia positions itself for a thriving digital economy, prioritizing women’s digital literacy is more than a strategy—it’s an essential element of nation-building and economic growth. This calls for a collaborative and concerted effort, involving public, private, and academic sectors to drive the country towards a more equitable and prosperous digital future.
