Cambodia Investment Review
SCAN Industrial Services (Cambodia) Co., Ltd. has launched a new industry-led workforce development partnership with Cambodia’s Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training (MLVT), aiming to strengthen technical education by directly linking vocational training with industrial employment and manufacturing opportunities.
The five-year Memorandum of Agreement (MoA), signed on July 8 by H.E. Heng Sour, Minister of Labour and Vocational Training, and Tommy Christensen, Chairman and Group CEO of SCAN Industrial Services (Cambodia), establishes a framework to progressively upgrade the Institute of Technology of Cambodia’s (ITI) Metal Engineering and Sheet Metal Welding Department.
The initiative comes as Cambodia seeks to expand higher-value manufacturing, attract greater industrial investment and address growing demand for skilled technical workers by strengthening its Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) system.
Aligned with the Royal Government’s Pentagonal Strategy and the Cambodia Skills Development Roadmap 2023–2035, the partnership aims to help develop a technically capable workforce equipped to meet international industry standards while supporting the country’s long-term industrial ambitions.
Under the agreement, SCAN Industrial Services, through its workforce development division SME Resource Center, will work alongside MLVT to modernise technical training programmes, introduce internationally benchmarked curricula and strengthen instructor capabilities through a structured Train-the-Trainer programme in collaboration with Danish technical schools.
Read More: Opinion: Cambodia’s Skills Revolution – Why TVET Matters Now More Than Ever
The programme is designed to produce certified Cambodian industrial workers by combining classroom-based vocational education with structured apprenticeships in the private sector, creating a clearer pathway from training into employment.
Tommy Christensen said the partnership represents an important step towards strengthening Cambodia’s industrial workforce by improving the quality and relevance of technical education while working closely with government and industry to develop skills that match employer demand.
Creating a Direct Pathway from Training to Employment
Unlike traditional vocational training programmes that focus primarily on classroom education, the initiative is built around an integrated “Learn → Do → Certify” model that connects technical education with practical workplace experience and internationally recognised certification.
Students will begin their training within Cambodia’s national TVET system at ITI before progressing into structured apprenticeships with industrial partners. The final stage of the programme will prepare graduates for certification and employment through SCAN Industrial Services’ planned private industrial facility.
The company said the facility is intended to support manufacturing aligned with international and European industry standards while helping position Cambodia as a competitive destination for higher-value industrial investment.
Strengthening Cambodia’s TVET System
Beyond training students, the partnership also focuses on building long-term institutional capacity within Cambodia’s vocational education system.
Existing ITI instructors will receive professional development through a structured Train-the-Trainer programme, allowing new technical knowledge and teaching methods to remain embedded within the national TVET system beyond the duration of the agreement.
The partnership also aims to strengthen collaboration between education providers and employers by creating employment pathways for graduates through SCAN’s network of Cambodian and international industrial companies.
In addition, customised workforce development programmes will be offered to private sector businesses, with training revenues expected to contribute towards the programme’s long-term financial sustainability through a private sector co-funding model.
The initiative will also support trainees from poor and vulnerable households through Cambodia’s TVET 1.5M Programme, expanding access to technical education while helping address skills shortages across the industrial sector.
Danish-Cambodian Industrial Collaboration
SCAN Industrial Services (Cambodia) is a subsidiary of Denmark-based NAT Oil & Energy ApS, which has decades of experience in industrial engineering, energy operations and technical workforce development.
The company said its Cambodian operations are structured as a Danish-Cambodian enterprise with Cambodian co-ownership, reflecting a strategy of combining international industrial expertise with local investment, partnerships and entrepreneurship to support Cambodia’s long-term industrial development.
The agreement formally activates SME Resource Center’s workforce training operations at ITI, with SCAN Industrial Services planning to expand the model across the wider ITI network over the coming years as the programme develops.
