IIC EVENTS: ASIA REPORT

By CRISTINA MURRONI

The opening speech highlighted the progress made in Cambodia towards laying the ground for digital transformation in order
to stimulate productivity, harness new resources for growth and enhance citizens’ quality of life. Representatives from industry praised the country’s approach, which helps make investments sustainable. In some other markets low usage, currency turmoil and adverse macro conditions make it very difficult for operators to justify upgrading to the latest technology, particularly
when spectrum auctions require large payments in US dollars. With low ARPUs (average revenue per user), the long-term viability of investments is often under the spotlight. The private sector is responsible for about two thirds of total global
investments in the digital space while one third of investments has come from the public sector including governments, multilateral development banks and aid agencies. Public-private partnerships have had a key role in some markets, while
in others, operators have formed consortia to compete against Big Tech for ad revenues.