Australia–Cambodia Trade and Investment Opportunities Research Consultant
Position Circumstances
- Career Category: Individual Consultant / Advisor
- Schedule:Full-time
- Salary: N/A
Reports to: Lead Economist
Location: Remote or Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Period of Assignment: 6 months
Duration: up to 30 working days for the first assignment (and up to 30 days for follow on work based on the outcomes of the first assignment).
Employment type: Short-term Consultancy
Contractual arrangement: Open to International and Cambodian applicants
Position Summary
CAPRED is seeking a motivated and experienced consultant with strong research, analytical, and communication skills to deliver a landscape scan of Australian firms doing business in SEA, to identify potential partners for CAPRED trade and investment work.
The assignment comprises two steps:
- Rapid identification of any additional sector and subsector opportunities where Australian and Cambodian strengths are complementary, beyond those previously identified (agricultural technologies and services, processed food and beverages, and equipment and services for renewable energy).
- Map and profile firms—identify Australian firms active in priority sectors across Southeast Asia (especially Vietnam, Indonesia and Thailand), then assess the potential to expand into Cambodia (or Cambodian exports to Australia).
Duties & Responsibilities:
- Inception Phase
- Kick-off meeting with CAPRED and the Australian Embassy’s Head of Trade and Investment.
- Desk review of existing research, relevant policies, sector studies, and trade/investment data, including the Cambodian government’s new Investment Promotion Roadmap and the Australian government’s Southeast Asia Economic Strategy.
- Work plan and research framework, including proposed data sources and methods.
- Sector Opportunity Identification and Prioritisation
- Define transparent criteria (e.g., demand/market size, competitiveness, enabling environment, value chain integration, regulatory considerations, impact and feasibility).
- Produce sector/subsector short list and prioritisation matrix.
- Draft concise value propositions for priority sectors.
- Firm profiling
- Use trade & investment data and responsible AI/web‑scraping techniques to identify firms.
- (With CAPRED/DFAT facilitation) coordinate with Austrade for additional exporter data in priority sectors.
- Develop firm profiles (products/services, markets, capabilities, competitive advantages) and assess pathways for Cambodia entry (or Cambodian export pathways to Australia).
- Report and Recommendations
- Prepare a draft report and presentation synthesising sector opportunities, firm profiles and recommended entry pathways.
- Present findings to CAPRED and stakeholders; integrate feedback into the final report.
- Provide practical next steps (e.g., targeted outreach sequence, partnering options, and collateral needs).
Expected Profile of Candidates
Qualifications:
- Master's Degree in or equivalent professional experience in economics, business, international trade, or a related field.
Skills & Knowledge:
General & Technical Skills
- Strong understanding of trade and investment linkages between Australia and Southeast Asia.
- Demonstrated knowledge of at least one of the priority sectors (renewable energy or agricultural).
- Proven experience in private sector development, trade promotion, or investment analysis. The following types of experience would be highly relevant:
- Experience at a trade and investment promotion agency.
- Experience exploring new investment or trade opportunities for a multinational company.
- Ability to apply data-driven approaches, including trade data analysis. Experience with AI/web-scraping tools is desirable.
- Excellent analytical, reporting, and presentation skills.
- Experience working with development programs, donor-funded projects, or international organisations is preferred.
