Phnom Penh
1st September 2024
The Global Cleantech Innovation Program (GCIP) Cambodia is part of the global initiative GCIP that aims to accelerate cleantech innovation and entrepreneurship in startups and SMEs in Cambodia. GCIP Cambodia marked the completion of the GCIP Cambodia Pre-Accelerator Program Cohort 2 with the announcement of the three winners on September 1, 2024, at the Business Development Center (BDC). The competition was presided over by Dr. Vong Rylida, Deputy Director of Techo Startup Center.
The GCIP Cambodia Pre-Accelerator Program commenced in July 2024 and received 47 applications from early-stage startups and university students with diverse innovative cleantech solutions. The 7 potential teams and individuals were shortlisted for the GCIP Cambodia Pre-Accelerator Program in late August 2024 to receive intensive training on key topics, such as technology and product development, business models, market approaches and strategies, and elevator pitch practice. The intensive training consisted of a one-day Ideathon & Founder Connect on 29th September 2024 and a three-day Hackathon from 30 August to 1 September 2024. The teams also received coaching support from esteemed mentors and experience sharing from guest speakers who come from varied focuses, including business planning, product development, and marketing.
Similar to the previous cohort, GCIP Cambodia Accelerator Program Cohort 2 consists of two phases: Pre-Accelerator and Accelerator Program. The Pre-Accelerator Program has three main objectives, including (1) to spur and support the development of new ideas among university students or early-stage startups in becoming current or future entrants for the GCIP Cambodia accelerator program, (2) to support the formulation of new teams by connecting sole founders with potential co-founders possessing complementary skills and experience while inspiring a common mindset, and (3) to support the creation of cleantech prototypes in a short time period. Therefore, this program strongly encourages women founders of startups and SMEs to participate in the program.
On the final day of the Pre-Accelerator program, the teams pitched their business idea in front of four independent judges who uphold numerous experiences in the cleantech and business sectors. The top three performing teams below were selected to receive grant prizes, totaling USD 5,000.
First place winner Inkable received USD 2,500.
Second place winner Tmei Jaes received USD 1,500.
The third-place winner AgriTech received USD 1,000.
Below is the full list of the teams who participated in the Ideathon & Founder Connect and the Hackathon:
1. We Lab - ITC
2. Sovannak Mujin Agro Co,. Ltd
3. Nika Agriculture Products
4. LY MONYVANN
5. VPCM
6. AgriTech
7. Tmei Jaes - ថ្មីចែស
8. INKABLE
9. Le Mekong
10. Kampot Eco Recyled Co,. Ltd
11. Ecomotion
12. MeanGreenUnseen
GCIP Cambodia is now in its third year of project implementation with the undergoing of the Accelerator program cohort 2 after its successful completion of the first cohort in 2023. GCIP Cambodia Pre-Accelerator is funded by the United Nations for Industrial Development Organizations (UNIDO) and Global Environment Facility (GEF), organized by the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF), Techo Startup Center (TSC), and co-organized by Prestige Consulting, with support from the Network for Global Innovation (NGIN).
