Cambodia Investment Review
In episode 103 Rising Giants podcast hosts Max Thornton and Dom Kalousek sat down with Vantharith Oum, Senior Startup Development Specialist at Techo Startup Center, to share insights into Cambodia’s startup and Entrepreenural Support Ecosystem (ESOs) and the multi-faceted roles of the Techo Startup Center.
Vantharith started by discussing his experiences in Korea, where he completed his masters degree before moving back to Cambodia in late 2013. Upon his return, he joined Paragon University’s administrative team. When asked to compare the entrepreneurial climates of the two nations, Vantharith said, “Living in a bustling country like Korea, you notice the speed of life and business. While it’s inspiring, it’s also challenging to adapt the same models to Cambodia due to differences in market readiness and infrastructure.”
Vanthariths career in the Cambodian startup/ entrepreneurship world began around 2018, notably with WaterSHED Ventures. The company, although not a conventional startup, was a social impact enterprise aimed at tackling long-standing sanitation issues through market approach for sustainability (versus aid dependency). The innovation at WaterSHED Ventures was deeply rooted in its market-driven approach and understanding user behavior,” Vantharith revealed. He cited the company’s prefabricated toilets as a case in point, which addressed labor and material shortages in rural areas, while also ensuring quality control as they were fully built in-house.
Building Relationships and Demonstrating Consistent Growth
When questioned about his key takeaways from WaterSHED Ventures, Vantharith said, “The multifaceted aspects of running a business or startup became exceedingly clear to me. Beyond product design, we dealt with a host of operational facets like sales, market strategy, accounting, cash flow, and compliance.” He added that many startup founders misguidedly assume that securing an investor is a swift process, while it involves building a long-term relationship and demonstrating consistent quarterly growth.
In late 2021, Vantharith made the transition to Techo Startup Center, his first experience in a government role. He clarified that the center is not merely startup-focused but has a five-fold agenda, known as the Terms of Reference (TORs). These encompass startup nurturing programs, community-building initiatives like Startup Cambodia, two different teams for applied and policy research, digital platforms to facilitate government digital infrastructure, and an enterprise go-digital scheme to accelerate digital solutions for SMEs.
Discussing the challenges of managing the startup database, Vantharith admitted, “Updating the platform with various programs, awards, and initiatives that startups are engaging in has been a team effort. We recently received funding from CBRD Fund under the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications, which has allowed us to become more proactive.”
A Supply-Side Push Than a Demand-Driven Model
Vantharith also touched on the educational channels available to Cambodian students interested in entrepreneurship. “There are numerous avenues, both in public and private sectors. The Ministry of Education’s Youth 21program is one such initiative to introduce the startup mindset to school students,” he mentioned.
Read more: Developing Cambodias digital economy and FinTech landscape
Reflecting on Cambodia’s young startup ecosystem, Vantharith noted an imbalance, describing it as more of a supply-side push than a demand-driven model. He highlighted some fragmentations or silos in the existing programs, by wishing to see more open collaborations and synergy among the various actors and ESOs in the future in a collective effort to better support to entrepreneurs and startup founders.
Addressing the role of NGOs, he suggested that they might have a more value-added role in the near future if they can pivot their focus towards digital adoption and digital literacy education for Cambodia’s rural population. Every year, more and more Cambodians go online; and one of the key issues to be addressed included online safety and fraud prevention. Market access to rural populations startups would find it beneficial as they can scale up beyond Phnom Penh or other urban cities with ease.
He also believed that grooming rural consumers and ensuring that digital services are inclusive and rural consumers buy or shop online with ease and confidence (without fraud) would be a win-win for all stakeholders, esp. the startups themselves.
He further commented on impact investing, stating, “While it may be a newer concept here, it’s essential for founders to consider the long-term societal and global impact of their ventures.”
Business Synergy Over Return on Investment
Vanthariths recent involvement in an exposure trip to Thailand revealed growing regional interest in Cambodias tech startups. Thai and Japanese investors are particularly interested in sectors like delivery, where local players can service their existing supply chain, he said, adding that this approach was more about business synergy than just a return on investment.
On future trends, Vantharith reflected, Data will be the currency of the future. If I were to launch a startup today, it would be a B2B CRM focusing on meaningful data analytics.
Vantharith concluded the conversation by sharing personal life values that keep him motivated: the importance of being self-sustainable, making a generational impact, and delivering value in every task. He also recommended a book by Adam Grant, ” Give and Take: A Revolutionary Approach to Success (2013),” as a read that categorizes people into three types based on their interpersonal dynamics.
Vantharith Oum’s comprehensive remarks provide a multi-layered understanding of Cambodia’s evolving startup ecosystem, spotlighting both the challenges and burgeoning opportunities for growth and investment.
