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E-commerce market critical to Cambodia, CWEA says
The Cambodian Women Entrepreneurs Association (CWEA) said that e-Commerce in Cambodia is set to grow rapidly with the ease of doing business in the Kingdom. Entrepreneurs explained that the e-commerce sector has boomed in the country in recent years thanks to the rapid development of technologies, the fast growth of Internet users, and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Keo Mom, Chief Executive Officer of Lyly Food Industry and president of the Cambodian Women Entrepreneurs association told Khmer Times that the importance of doing business through e-commerce has many benefits, especially during the lockdown during the Covid-19 Crisis, which is an opportunity for us to sell online.
“We have observed that in the context of Covid-19 pandemic, the number of online purchases of goods has increased significantly in the last three years. For an online business, it costs less to advertise online than it does to rent a house and a booth psychically.”
She went on to add, “There are some e-commerce businesses. Trading Volume is not yet big. The electronic use of the Ministry of Commerce is not yet widespread. And we expect this e-commerce to continue to grow in the future.”
Cambodia’s market value of e-commerce had increased to $970 million last year, up 19 percent from $813 million in 2020, according to the Ministry of Commerce’s iTrade Bulletin released recently.
The e-commerce revenue was mainly from fashion, accounting for $263.3 million, followed by electronics ($254.4 million); beauty, health, personal and household care ($230.5 million); toys, hobby and do-it-yourself ($63 million); food and beverages ($101.5 million); furniture ($46.3 million) and media ($11 million).
Some 55 percent of e-commerce purchase orders were placed via the Internet on a desktop PC and the rest on tablets or smartphones, the bulletin added.
“By 2025, the e-commerce revenue in Cambodia is projected to reach $1.78 billion,” it said.
Cambodian Ministry of Commerce’s undersecretary of state and spokesman Penn Sovicheat said “e-commerce market is a potential sector to help boost our economic recovery in the post-pandemic era… During the pandemic, e-commerce had grown rapidly and there’s no doubt that the growth will continue in coming years.”
To support the sustainable development of e-commerce, Cambodia has adopted the landmark E-commerce Law and the Consumer Protection Law in 2019, and the Law on Competition in 2021, as well as launched an e-commerce strategy in 2020.
According to experts, e-commerce is convenient, fast, and safe for consumers thanks to the rise in Internet usage and mobile payments.
The Southeast Asian country currently has about 17.7 million internet subscribers, with most of them having access to online platforms via smartphones, according to the Telecommunication Regulator of Cambodia.
Source: https://www.khmertimeskh.com/501148275/e-commerce-market-critical-to-cambodia-cwea-says/