Cambodia Investment Review
The Co-Creation Bootcamp, held from 29 to 31 July 2026 in Kampot, brought together 21 organizations, including 12 Entrepreneurial Support Organizations (ESOs) and 9 members of the Ecosystem Builder Network (EBN) and/or Thematic Coordination Advisory Groups (TCGs), to transform priorities from Cambodia’s Entrepreneurial Ecosystem Roadmap (EER) 2025 to 2035 into practical initiatives and collaborative action. As a follow-up to the Curated Workshop held in May 2026, the three-day bootcamp focused on helping ecosystem actors move from prioritisation to implementation through a structured co-creation process.
The Entrepreneurial Ecosystem Roadmap (EER) provides a shared framework for fostering a more coordinated and structured approach to entrepreneurship development in Cambodia. Developed as a living document, the roadmap identifies 19 recommendations across six domains and seeks to strengthen alignment between ecosystem actors, programmes, and investments. While the Curated Workshop helped ecosystem actors identify priority actions for the coming 12 to 18 months, the Co-Creation Bootcamp was designed to support ESOs in translating those priorities into concrete and implementable initiatives.
Facilitated by international innovation and community-building expert Helena Habdija, the bootcamp guided participants through a structured process that challenged them to move beyond initial ideas and first clarify the problems they were trying to solve. The three-day journey included organisational capability mapping, CARE Café pitches, problem tree analysis, Dream and Disaster Backcasting, concept prototyping, peer feedback, partnership mapping, and planning beyond the grant.
Six Prioritized Roadmap Actions
“Over three days, 12 ESOs moved from six prioritized roadmap actions to concrete project concepts, refining challenges, designing solutions, building prototypes, mapping partners, and planning implementation.” said Lisa Chao, Business Networking Lead, Khmer Enterprise.
This process helped participating ESOs focus on specific challenges connected to the roadmap’s priority actions rather than attempting to address broad ecosystem issues. By the end of the workshop, organizations had developed concepts related to investment readiness, market expansion, women in technology entrepreneurship, university startup development, deep-tech commercialisation, financial literacy, food-preneur market access, and rural entrepreneurship.
A recurring message throughout the bootcamp was that roadmap implementation requires more than funding alone. While participating organizations will have the opportunity to submit concept notes for the Roadmap Pilot Grant, the workshop deliberately adopted a “One Grant, Portfolio of Projects” mindset. The aim was to develop a pipeline of initiatives that could move forward through different partnerships, funding sources, and organisational commitments, regardless of whether they ultimately receive pilot funding.
“What we built in co-creation is stronger because it was shaped by different organizations working toward the same goal.” Said Vanna Sy, Senior Manager, Human Resources Development Department, CJCC.
This collaborative approach was also reflected in participant feedback. According to the post-workshop survey, all 31 respondents rated the bootcamp positively, with an average satisfaction score of 4.5 out of 5. All respondents reported that the event was an effective platform to connect with others and that they made new connections during the three days.
Give a Day and Ecosystem Builder Network
Participants most frequently identified networking opportunities, partnership and role mapping, action planning, idea generation, CARE Café pitches and project selection, LEGO prototyping, Dream and Disaster Backcasting, final presentations, and pitch preparation as the most useful elements of the bootcamp. These responses suggest that participants valued both the structured design process and the opportunity to build relationships with other ecosystem actors.
“This bootcamp helped us move beyond individual ideas and identify partners who can turn them into action.” Said Somphoasphalyka Sok, Program Manager, Prestige Alliance
The survey also pointed to concrete collaboration potential. Among ESO respondents who answered the collaboration question, 19 out of 22 indicated either active collaboration or potential follow-up collaboration. Respondents mentioned planned or potential discussions with organizations such as Smart, Khmer Enterprise, GIZ, , Techo Startup Centre, Cambodia Academy of Digital Technology (CADT), CamTech, SME Bank, Growth4Growth, and other ecosystem partners.
Feedback from EBN and TCG members further reinforced the value of the process. All EBN and TCG respondents rated the feedback and inputs from ecosystem actors as either helpful or very helpful. Their responses also showed interest in exploring further alignment across different project concepts, indicating that the bootcamp created space not only for ESO concept development, but also for wider ecosystem engagement.
“One of the biggest outcomes was trust. When organizations trust each other, collaboration becomes possible and impact becomes sustainable” Said Sophorn Kith, Investment Fund Manager – Mekong Region, ADB Frontier
The bootcamp also demonstrated the complementary nature of the roadmap’s operationalisation pathways. While TCG domain groups continue to provide longer-term coordination, strategic guidance, and collaborative problem solving across roadmap domains, the Co-Creation Bootcamp served as a practical mechanism for testing ideas, developing partnerships, and generating initiatives that can accelerate implementation in the shorter term.
Roadmap Pilot Grant
As the next step, participating organizations will further refine their concepts and submit proposals for the Roadmap Pilot Grant, which will support one selected initiative aligned with the roadmap’s priority actions. Beyond the funding opportunity, however, the bootcamp has already achieved an important outcome by strengthening relationships among organizations that share a common commitment to supporting entrepreneurs in Cambodia.
By creating a structured space for collaboration, experimentation, and joint problem solving, the Co-Creation Bootcamp has helped move the Entrepreneurial Ecosystem Roadmap one step closer to practical implementation. It also reaffirmed the value of EBN, TCGs, and co-creation platforms in turning shared priorities into collective action for Cambodia’s entrepreneurial ecosystem.
The Co-creation bootcamp is organized as a part of the Give a Day and Ecosystem Builder Network (EBN) initiatives under the Collaboration Pillar of the Enhancing Entrepreneurial Ecosystem and Investments (3Ei), implemented in collaboration with Khmer Enterprise (KE) and Swisscontact and funded by Khmer Enterprise (KE), Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), and Korean International Cooperation Agency (KOICA).
