Smart’s Priorities: Education for All and Full Move to 4G

KHMER TIMES
MAY KUNMAKARA

Thomas Hundt, CEO of Smart Axiata. KT/ Mai Vireak

Investment in human capital is crucial for the country and Smart Axiata, the largest mobile telecom operator in Cambodia, has teamed up with UNESCO and the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport to improve access for all to education in the Kingdom. The challenge is to increase the literacy rate in the country, which is one of the lowest in Asean. Thomas Hundt, CEO of Smart Axiata, sat down with Khmer Times’ May Kunmakara and talked about Smart's partnership with UNESCO and the government, and development of the telecoms industry.

KT: Recently, Smart signed a long-term partnership agreement with UNESCO in Cambodia. What was the agreement for?

Mr. Hundt: The agreement means that UNESCO as a UN organization, which does a lot of work in education, and Smart have teamed up for future education programs. UNESCO is working very closely with the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport, and Smart had decided to team up with the UN agency as an exclusive partner in the education sector to support all programs that UNESCO is planning to introduce and implement in the next couple of years.

We believe that education is the key to prosperity. It is the key to getting Cambodians out of poverty and it is making tremendous changes everywhere. We are really committed to it [education] that’s why we have signed this long-term strategic partnership with UNESCO.

KT: What does the partnership contribute to the development of education in Cambodia? Which student category benefits most – primary school level, secondary or university?

Mr. Hundt: Well, the exact programs that will be in the partnership are currently being worked upon to make them more concrete. Since last year, we have been the main partner for the national literacy campaign in Cambodia. This year’s national literacy campaign is slightly different. We will be focusing on girls – to make sure girls have a fair chance, like boys, to a decent education. We also want to cut the dropout rate of girl students. These are the kinds of programs that we’re working with UNESCO in the next couple of years.

In the partnership with UNESCO, Smart will be providing financial support and also making in-kind contributions. Last year, in the national literacy campaign we managed to reach out to over 92,000 people all over the country. The partnership with UNESCO will be a long-term strategic one. We have developed a framework and we are now working together with UNESCO as a team to further develop that framework.

KT: The literacy rate in Cambodia is still low compared to other countries in the region. How does the partnership with UNESCO help increase the rate?

Mr. Hundt: The literacy rate in Cambodia is a very important topic. In the 2014 official statistics and also in the findings of our national literacy campaign, roughly two million Cambodians are illiterate. But that could be the tip of the iceberg. There could be more, as people are shameful to admit that they can’t read or write. Due to that, UNESCO reckons there could be at least four million illiterate people in the country. Here, I am talking about adults and not children ‒ the adults who have been left out of the education system and those who have fallen in the cracks, and never attended school in their lives.

So, it is a big effort to fight illiteracy in the country. Last year, we managed to get 92,000 people into the classroom and, I think, 75 percent of them passed the national exams. But even those who didn’t pass the exams, at least learnt to read and write.

As I mentioned earlier, literacy is the key for awareness. For instance, how are you going to be aware of what’s happening in the country if you can’t read newspapers. If you are illiterate, there is a 99 percent chance that you will end up at the bottom of society – excluded from everything and even generating additional income for your family.

It’s still a big effort to increase the literacy rate in the country and it’s an ongoing effort by UNESCO and the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport, in partnership with Smart, to tackle the problem.

KT: Let’s talk a little about the telecoms sector. What has been the improvement in the telecoms industry, in terms of technological development?

Mr. Hundt: I think the telecoms sector in the country is now at a more mature stage. I remember when I first came to the country sometime between 2008 and 2009, there were nine mobile telecom operators in the market, and I found it quite crazy.

The consolidation happened when Smart bought StarCell in 2011, then Smart and Hello merged to become Smart Axiata, and soon after that Mfone went bankrupt and Beeline exited the market. Now we are down to three major players and this is a more matured sector.

But there are still some small players out there and we believe they would not be able to sustain themselves. Ultimately, for a market of 15 million people, three players would be realistic. Sustainability in the mobile telecoms industry is not only building up the business side but also involves continued investment in technology.

Smart launched its 4G service two and a half years ago and almost 50 percent of our network is equipped into 4G. So, you can enjoy 4G service not only in the city but also along the national roads and in all 25 provinces. We are constantly investing to upgrade our services.

Consumer behavior is changing all the time and obviously the internet is now a driving force. Almost 45 percent of all mobile devices are smartphones and consumers are increasingly relying on the internet for their communication needs. From this evidence, it meant that we had to change our network from a voice-call one ‒ which we had been operating for five years ‒ to a data network. So 100 percent of Smart’s base stations are of 3G, with 50 percent of them also able to serve 4G. This gap will be closed in the next one to two years, where all our base stations will be 4G. Smart is at the forefront of technological development and that’s why we have been so successful over the past year.

KT: How do you compare the development of our telecoms sector with our neighbors?

Mr. Hundt: In comparison with our neighbors, Smart launched its 4G network two and a half years ago ‒ way ahead of Thailand and Vietnam. Vietnam and Laos still do not have 4G and so, I think, regionally we are way ahead.

So, I think Cambodia can be proud of that development. Smart is proud of being a leading player in the whole telecoms infrastructure. Cambodia is well ahead of our neighboring countries.

KT: What is Smart’s investment plans in the years to come?

Mr. Hundt: No doubt, investment [in technology] is our key and we aim to keep continuing that. This year we are investing $75 million in data upgrade and that will be the range of investment in the years to come.

We need to invest to upgrade our data network to 4G. But in 2020, we will be moving into 5G and that will be a huge step. Investment in mobile telecoms can never stop. It is not like a power plant where you build one and can run it for 25 years. In our line of business, you need to make big investments every year.