- Posted on: September 29, 2019
For its second edition, the Cambodia Waste Summit brought together executives from the Cambodian and German business community, policy makers and line departments as well as environmental organizations. The event was mainly hosted by ADW, the Cambodian Education and Waste Management Organization (COMPED) and was supported by the GIZ Global Business Network Programme and EuroCham.
In his opening remarks Tassilo Brinzer, president of the German Business Group (ADW), highlighted the growing private sector engagement in waste management. In three panels afterwards, specialists from different institutions shared their expertise on waste management in Cambodia. Most participants agreed that waste management is not successfully implemented yet. Shortcomings refer to each level of waste management ranging from poor waste collection, waste separation, recycling, missing financially viable business models, and last but not least, little awareness amongst Cambodians for proper waste handling.
Possibbly, Germany’s circular economy concept that encompasses different operating models, waste collection and waste separation strategies, and recycling technologies, could become a paragon for Cambodia. While Germany is regarded as an international leader in successful waste management and recycling, several German companies are already operating businesses in the waste management sector in Southeast Asia.
In addition to the conference, advanced solutions, innovations and programmes were presented in the exhibition hall. Ample matchmaking opportunities to meet potential partners during and after the conference were available. Altogether, the conference and the exhibition gave all visitors the opportunity to engage actively with the speakers and exhibitors and to get a firm understanding of the challenges, opportunities and solutions relating to waste management in Cambodia and beyond.