In 2020, Cambodia experienced a negative growth rate for the first time in two decades. As a country susceptible to small changes in the global economy, it grew increasingly obvious that Cambodian businesses need a more solid foundation to grow and diversify. Most businesses in Cambodia are small and medium enterprises (SMEs) but they significantly contribute to the country’s employment, domestic economy and poverty reduction. However, SMEs are encountering several major challenges including informality of operation, limited access to finance, […]

The repercussions of COVID-19 resulted in global disruptions to supply and demand as well as shocks to the global production networks. This paper employs a trade analysis approach to assess the impacts of coronavirus on Cambodia’s export performance. Utilising Revealed Comparative Advantage (RCA) index, changes were analysed using data pre-and post-pandemic to explore the Kingdom’s competitiveness and dynamic export position during this time. We found evidence that COVID-19 has caused a 6 percent decline in Cambodia’s trade in 2020 and […]

Research from developed nations has shown that later-born children tend to have worse outcomes in terms of health, nutrition, and education. However, evidence from developing countries remains mixed. In our research, using data on 423,848 individuals in Cambodia, we investigate how birth order affects not only education but also occupational choices in this country. Our estimates show that, compared to firstborn children, later-born children have fewer years of schooling and lower literacy skills, and are less likely to participate in […]

We quantify the effects of reopening economic activities after the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown on the lives and livelihoods of the workers in the garment, footwear, and travel goods sector in Cambodia. We employ fixed-effects difference-in-differences and quantile regression analyses using a panel survey of 2,000 workers interviewed by phone in June 2021 and June 2022. The impacts are disaggregated by gender. We find that lives and livelihoods of female and male workers have improved since the reopening, albeit not out […]

The Covid-19 pandemic has devastated many developing countries, particularly those in East and Southeast Asia due to their heavy reliance on global economic connections and low public health capacity. Although many have managed a respectful rebound since early 2021, uncertainties in world economic recovery have left many economies in unstable positions. Our study on developing Southeast Asia has several main findings. First, government expenditure on health and economic stimulus packages to mitigate the impact of Covid-19 pandemic in developing ASEAN […]

Cambodia’s economy has made significant progress over the decades. However, the smooth and robust developments were significantly disturbed in 2020 with the arrival of the global Covid-19 pandemic. Globally, both internal and external demands, FDI flows, the movement of goods, and travel were all severely impacted by governments increasingly imposing lockdowns and other restrictions to contain the spread of the unprecedented and deadly disease. From an economic standpoint, sectors that are high-contact including tourism, textile and apparel, construction, and real […]

Despite growing research on COVID-19 and its impacts on Cambodia, the extent to which COVID-19 affects Cambodia’s trade, global value chains (GVCs) and export competitiveness has not yet been well established. This study, therefore, aims to fill knowledge gaps and examine the dynamic of Cambodia’s exports, GVCs and competitiveness during the pandemic. Specifically, it analyses Cambodia’s export performance and assesses the extent to which the pandemic affects Cambodia’s export structure and dynamic comparative advantage. The paper will also conduct an […]

In early 2020, Covid-19 caused a global health crisis which drastically limited human interactions and economic activities both within and across borders, disrupted global supply chains, and resulted in economic slowdowns in countries around the world. Cambodia is no exception in this pandemic era. Cambodia registered a negative economic growth rate of -3.1% in 2020 as its service and industry sectors experienced severe declines (-6.7% and -1.2%, respectively). As a small, export-dependent economy, Cambodia is susceptible to external environment conditions. […]

The book is published at ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute and can be found on this website.

To understand the factors for improving skill development in the manufacturing industry, the study utilized mixed-method research combining surveys and in-depth interviews to collect data from 101 firms. 36 in-depth interviews with the firms’ human resources and production departments were carried out. A binary logistic regression model was used to explore the relationships between in-employment skill development and eight influencing factors such as FDI, change in products, technology usage, work organization, sales performance, year of operation, export, and require more […]

The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted most aspects of socioeconomic development, with the garment, manufacturing and textile industry being no exception. Decreased demand for orders has led to factory closures, and workers being suspended or laid off. The empirical evidence in this policy brief captures the impact of COVID-19 on the livelihoods of 2000 surveyed garment workers. The survey revealed that a majority of workers (80 percent) have faced income reductions, as well as reductions in food and non-food consumption. Respondents […]

As it looks to meet its development goals, the Cambodian government can develop a holistic road map informed by lessons learned from success stories in advanced industrial economies. Nobel Memorial Prize winner Gary Becker theorized that investing in human capital through education and training is central to the socioeconomic development of all countries. His ideas became hugely influential, and many nations have since poured a great deal of resources into the sector. Cambodia needs to follow suit. As things stand, it faces […]