The Enhancing Entrepreneurial Ecosystem and Investments (3Ei) is a five-year initiative (2023 – 2027) implemented by Khmer Enterprise and Swisscontact and co-financed by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) and Khmer Enterprise. The initiative works closely with the entrepreneurial ecosystem actors in Cambodia to strengthen Cambodia's socio-economic development. The overall goal of the 3Ei is for the private sector to actively contribute to Cambodia's socio-economic development and attain the goals of the SDGs. The achievement of this overall goal will be driven by two outcomes. Outcome 1: Enhanced coordination, and collaboration within the entrepreneurial ecosystem; and Outcome 2: Increased business performance and investments in the ecosystem and impact enterprises.
The approach of the 3Ei project sets up the four intervention areas in a way that four of the IA’s i.e., IA1: Collaboration pillar, IA2: Entrepreneurship and innovation pillar and IA4: Data pilllar, IA 5: Mentorship Pillar, feed into and contribute IA3: Technical assistance facility pillar that would help to build investable pipeline and mitigate risk for the impact investors to mobilize investment for small and growing businesses (SGBs), further bolstering their development and success.
Under this Intervention Area, the 3Ei initiative aims to scale up the Give a Day, Ecosystem Builders Network (EBN), and Cambodia’s Entrepreneurial Ecosystem Strengthening Conference (CAMESCO) and institutionalise the three collaboration platforms.
Give a Day aims to create a space for key stakeholders in the ecosystem to systematically dive deep into key issues of the entrepreneurial ecosystem. The objective of Give a Day is to build connections and trust between entrepreneurial support organizations (ESOs).
The objective of a facilitated quarterly meetings of the Ecosystem Builders Network (EBN) is to share progress of programmes and exchange information to strengthen an entrepreneurial ecosystem. This creates a space through which development partners and ecosystem builders can learn more about each other’s programme and identify market gaps and opportunities.
The objective of CAMESCO is to, a) recap year-round summary of Cambodia’s entrepreneurial ecosystem initiative and status, including the Give a Day, EBN meetings and other ecosystem strengthening meetings including actions undertaken; b) increased awareness of new programmes that are being launched in the next year to support the entrepreneurial ecosystem; c) listen to regional/global initiatives and its implication in Cambodia; d) attract new investors; and e) network with national and regional organizations.
Study tours for ESO’s is planned to provide the target group with an opportunity to learn about the best practices, broaden regional networks, and develop actional strategies that contribute to the growth of Cambodia’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. A follow-up activity after Study Tour is Bootcamp which aimed to create a space for participants to reflect and create a solution using the inspiration and information ESOs have gained from study tour and co-create innovation solutions in addressing challenges of an entrepreneurial ecosystem.
Under this Intervention Area, 3Ei initiative is dedicated to supporting ESOs and startups in overcoming hurdles like limited technical proficiency, local talent shortages, and low resilience. Through partnering with local ESOs, the initiative endeavours to elevate their programmes and effectiveness, delivering high-value services to their entrepreneur network through strategic interventions and global networking opportunities.
Under this Intervention Area, the 3Ei initiative aims to address the financial and non-financial barriers faced by early and growth enterprises and start-ups through the Technical Assistance Facility. The Technical Assistance Facility will be established as an innovative TA facility that operates through a TA repayment model, to support the impact of the enterprise on their journey. This means that impact enterprise can access needed TA despite cash constraints and then repay this TA as their business grows and/or receive investments. The investment readiness technical assistance (TA) will be designed to support SMEs and Start-ups as they work to become investment ready and assist investors in building an investible pipeline. The repayable grant will be employed, which would require a small down payment, however the model would allow the company to repay the remaining balance once they successfully raise capital and grow their business. The facility will also provide post-investment technical assistance (TA) to support SMEs/Start-ups that have already successfully raised capital.
Under this Intervention Area, the 3Ei initiative aims to track start-up performance as well as identify gaps and opportunities to improve supporting structure. It urges an urgent need to track start-up benchmark index to allocate resources (funding programmes) in the right direction. Additionally, the initiative will also develop an investment index to reduce perceived risk of Cambodia market and potentially attract new investors. Furthermore, the SNA report conducted by Impact Hub Phnom Penh and Swisscontact in 2019, recommended a detailed, regular update of data on a periodic basis. Under the 3EI initiative, the sample size of the study will be expanded to generate a picture over time of how the ecosystem is evolving.
Under Mentorship Pillar, the Inclusive Mentoring Network for Entrepreneurs (IMNEt) initiative was born out of a pressing need to empower women entrepreneurs, advance gender inclusivity, and elevate the role of women in economic participation. IMNEt is dedicated to enhancing the skills of mentors, with a particular focus on female mentors, to better support entrepreneurs and advocate for the broader mentoring community.
The achievement of this overall goal will be driven by two outcomes.