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Cambodian industry and handicraft minister Cham Prasidh on Tuesday urges owners of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to prepare themselves for regional competition when ASEAN becomes a community at the end of next year.
"It is necessary for SMEs to focus on products' quality and prices in order to compete with products from other ASEAN countries," he told about 100 SME owners during a conference on the integration of ASEAN Economic Community in 2015.
The 10-country ASEAN sets Dec. 31, 2015 for the realization of the ASEAN Economic Community, a region of free flows of goods, services, skilled labor, capital and investment.
Prasidh said products'quality and shortage of capital for business expansion were main challenges for Cambodian SMEs to compete in the region.
The minister said currently, the country has some 505,000 SMEs, employing 1.67 million people and accounting for 60 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP).
Edward Clarence-Smith, representative of the United Nations Industrial Development Organization, said SMEs need to be proactively taking steps to increase their productivity and competitiveness by improving production techniques and upgrading the safety and quality of their products.
"Moreover, they need to give greater attention to complying with social and environmental standards," he said. "By doing so, they will improve their reputation and brand image and enhance their customer loyalty."
Keo Mom, vice-chairwoman of Phnom Penh Small and Medium Enterprises Association of Industries, said Cambodian SMEs are worrying about the competition when ASEAN turns into a community next year.
"We are strongly concerned over competition because our SMEs import raw materials for production and our techniques are limited, " she said.
Keo Mom, who is also chief executive officer of Lyly Food Industry, said currently, her company exports snack foods for children to Vietnam and Myanmar.
