AKP Phnom Penh, November 21, 2025 -- H.E. Hem Vanndy, Minister of Industry, Science, Technology & Innovation, received Ms. Anna Nesterova, Chairperson of the BRICS Women Business Alliance (WBA) Russia Chapter, to explore deeper cooperation in women entrepreneurship and business innovation.

During the meeting here on Nov. 20, Minister Vanndy emphasised the vital role of women-led enterprises, noting that “women’s entrepreneurship is essential to building a resilient, inclusive, and future-ready economy.” He welcomed BRICS WBA’s support to ASEAN Women Entrepreneurs Network (AWEN) and its growing interest in collaborating with Cambodia.

Ms. Nesterova praised Cambodia’s rapid development and beauty and shared updates from her meetings with the tourism sector. She reaffirmed that BRICS WBA is a non-political platform focused on creative industries, tourism, agriculture, finance, technology, and science.

She also highlighted key initiatives such as the annual WBA Summit, the Women Startup Contest, and upcoming plans to establish a Women Business Allocation Fund and expand regional offices across ASEAN including Cambodia.

BRICS is an intergovernmental grouping of major emerging economies—Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, and later expanded to include additional partner countries— working together to promote trade, investment, innovation, and inclusive development across member and partner countries.

AKP-MISTI