Cambodia Boosts Women-Led SMEs with $20M Fund

By: Women Entrepreneurs Review Team | Friday, 3 July 2026

The Asian Development Bank and the Cambodian government have together started a new initiative $20 million Energy Efficiency Revolving Fund (EERF) to boost investment in energy-saving technologies, cut down on carbon emissions, and reduce the country's reliance on imported fuels. The launched-on July 2, the project also aims to enhance financing access for women-led small and medium enterprises (SMEs) while assisting Cambodia's climate target of decreasing energy use by 19 percent below business-as-usual levels by 2030.

The programme will be executed through a collaboration between ADB, Cambodia's Ministry of Mines and Energy, the SME Bank of Cambodia, the Credit Guarantee Corporation of Cambodia, CIMB Bank PLC, and the Foreign Trade Bank of Cambodia to increase financing opportunities for businesses rolling out energy-efficient technologies.

Key Highlights:

• ADB and Cambodia have established a $20 million Energy Efficiency Revolving Fund
• This project aims at women-owned SMEs through providing financial support
• This fund aids Cambodia in its goal of achieving an 19% reduction in energy usage by 2030

The EERF, made up of a two-part fund, has $12 million from the United Kingdom through the ASEAN Catalytic Green Finance Facility and $8 million from the Green Climate Fund through the ACGF Green Recovery Programme. It is believed that the financing will not only help make businesses more energy-efficient but also potentially lower running costs as well as reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Upon the launching event, Yasmin Siddiqi remarked that the fund has come at a perfect time since Cambodia and other countries are facing energy security problems due to the turmoil in the Middle East. She added that, over 90 percent of businesses operating in Cambodia are SMEs, many of which have experienced negative impacts due to the soaring energy costs.

Yasmin mentioned that Cambodia's economy relies heavily on SMEs, however, many of these small and medium enterprises are still facing difficulties in obtaining finance.

She further stated that women-owned and women-led SMEs face even more challenges, especially in sectors that are not very much recognized or understood by the financial institutions.

For her, energy efficiency is one of the areas where businesses find it very difficult to get the necessary funding even though in the long run, the economic benefits are substantial.

Yasmin also stressed that investments in energy-efficient equipment/computers require a big amount of money initially, however, it will lead to long term advantages (energy/profit savings, more competitiveness, fewer use of external fuel). As a result, the revolving fund is intended to help with these financing issues and give Cambodian SMEs the opportunity to get loans under the Energy Transition Sector Development Programme with more accommodating and customized terms suitable to their needs.

SME Bank of Cambodia will be the implementing agency of the fund while the Credit Guarantee Corporation of Cambodia will provide partial credit guarantees to mitigate lending risks and collateral requirements that are usually the main obstacle for SMEs in obtaining financing. According to Yasmin Siddiqi, the strategy will promote non-collateralised lending, widen access to finance for a greater number of businesses, and initiate investments that would otherwise be unlikely.