3,130 new enterprises create 77,436 jobs in Cambodia
3,130 new enterprises create 77,436 jobs in Cambodia
As many as 3,130 new enterprises were launched in Cambodia in the first six months this year, pushing the number of factories to 44,417 where a total of 1.79 million people work, according to the latest data of the Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training (MLVT).
An official release quoting Kata On, Secretary of State and Spokesperson of MLVT, said on Monday that the newly opened enterprises employ 77,436 workers including 43,172 women.
As many as 82 of these new enterprises are in the garment sector employing 37,827 workers, including 26,507 women.
With this, as of June 2024, there are 1,538 enterprises in the garments, footwear and travel goods (GFT) sector in the country employing 913,017 workers who together earn an annual salary of approximately $2.97 billion.
The rise in the exports of GFT goods is believed to have attracted more investment in the sector, leading to the opening of more factories.
The Secretary of State said that the non-garments sector has 42,879 enterprises and a total of 879,774 workers with an annual salary of about $2.6 billion.
The Secretary of State further emphasised that the Royal Government of the Seventh Mandate under the leadership of Prime Minister Hun Manet has been pursuing policies to transform the country into an upper middle-income country by 2030 and a high-income country by 2050.
He said that the technical and vocational training programmes the new government is implementing would also turn Cambodia from a labour-intensive economy to one with skilled labour suited to the needs of the changing industrial climate.
It may be noted that Cambodia’s Industrial Development Policy (IDP) 2015-2025 has set objectives to modernize the country’s industrial structure from a labour-intensive one to a skill-driven one by 2025.
In November 2023, Prime Minister Hun Manet also launched a massive skills training programme for 1.5 million youth from poor and vulnerable families in Cambodia.
Those undergoing the programme receive an allowance of about 280,000 riels each per month. The vocational training is focused on 10 areas and there are 38 specialties in those areas.
The 10 sectors include construction, electricity, electronics, general mechanics, tourism, services, activism, agro-industry, business, and information technology.
The initiative is one of the priority programmes of the Royal Government and it aims to develop the workforce with the latest skills, competence, virtue, ethics, good behaviour, professional conscience and a sense of responsibility for work, occupation and profession.
Enrollment is for students, 15 years of age or older, from poor and vulnerable families, and with an equity or vulnerable family identification card. Participating students will receive free education besides the monthly stipend, advice on choosing skills and job market information and internships in enterprises, industrial establishments and private companies.
MLVT has also signed Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) with 18 employers’ organisations that agreed to provide internships for students in technical and vocational training under the programme.
Meanwhile, a recent survey report released by the European Chamber of Commerce (EuroCham) revealed that as many as 62 percent of companies in Cambodia planned to recruit more staff in 2024, with leadership, quality control and project management topping the list of most needed skills.
The report, based on a survey participated by 106 companies, indicated the relative confidence of the business community about short-term economic growth in the country but it also highlighted the issue of skills shortage – both soft skills and technical skills.
Among the 62 percent that indicated recruitment plans for the year, 33 percent said they were most likely to recruit and 29 percent said somewhat likely.
The survey was part of the Skills Development Program (SDP), a project mandated by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) and implemented by Swisscontact.
Among the companies that reported that they want to expand their staff this year, 50 percent said they planned to hire between one to nine candidates, and 30 percent planned to hire between 10 to 24 candidates.
Despite such an overall optimistic recruiting environment, 74 percent of survey respondents reported that they are facing challenges in hiring qualified employees in Cambodia.
The most common obstacles included labour shortages by location (30 percent), under-qualified staff in general (30 percent), high candidate salary and benefits expectations (20 percent) and difficulties in language proficiency (10 percent) and limited job applications for some advertised positions (10 percent).
