Following regional and global trends, Cambodian businesses are investing into becoming digital more than ever before, hoping to unlock the great potential this booming space can bring. Maximizing the digital opportunity, however, requires dedication to a digital-first approach, and a commitment to foster fresh local talent in order tospark a new generation of digital entrepreneurs and tech businesses.

To meet a growing interest in Cambodian digital content, companies and organizations in the digital and tech space across the country have been crafting and piloting projects to enhance growth and development in the sector. Due to the young population only just beginning to grasp the concept of digital business, these pilot projects have predominantly been in the form of ideation, incubation and mentorship.

The largest such project to date is the Smart Axiata Digital Innovation Fund – a 5 million USD venture capital fund devoted to Cambodian-based digital service companies and start-ups. SADIF is flanked by theSmartStart:Young Innovator Program, which aims to turn the most promising tech concepts from selected Cambodian university students into actual tech enterprises. Bothinitiatives will certainly contribute towards Cambodia’s digital economy in the coming years, as the landscape continues to develop and grow according to the country’s needs

“Smart is committed to being a pioneer and a long-term investor in the country’s ICT sector. We believe in the young generation and want to unlock and develop their untapped ingenuity,” said Thomas Hundt, CEO of SmartAxiata during the SmartStart launch, who sees the company as a central player in Cambodia’s digital future.

“Smart is one of our key development partners in Cambodia’s digital journey and we appreciate their support through initiatives like the Smart Axiata Digital Innovation Fund and SmartStart which provides significant practical and financial backing for our digital pioneers”, said H.E. Tram IvTek, Minister of Posts and Telecommunications of Cambodia during SADIF launch.

Cambodia’s journey of building a digital society has been made possible with the rapid expansion of mobile broadband availability and affordability. Smart continues to strive towards linking as many unconnected Cambodians with the fastest and widest award-winning mobile Internet network and new digital services as it continues to evolve into a digital lifestyle brand.Being a strong advocate of digital innovation, Smart has launched a diverserange of value added services and digital services such as SmartLuy, Smart Insurance, SmartPay, Smart Music and SmartNas.