Kith Meng (; ) is the Chairman and CEO of Royal Group of Companies. Established in 1991, Cambodia’s strategic investment holding company, the Royal Group is recognized as the country’s most dynamic and diversified business conglomerate with interests in a wide range of industries.

Early life and education

Meng is the youngest of three sons of

Chinese Cambodian Chinese Cambodians (or Sino-Khmers) are Cambodian citizens of Chinese ancestry or Chinese of full or partial Khmer ancestry. The Khmer term ''Khmer Kat Chen'' () is used for people of mixed Chinese and Khmer descent; ''Chen Khmer'' () means Cam ...

businessman Kith Peng Ike. He lived in Kandal Province until 1975 when the advent of the

Khmer Rouge The Khmer Rouge is the name that was popularly given to members of the Communist Party of Kampuchea (CPK), and by extension to Democratic Kampuchea, which ruled Cambodia between 1975 and 1979. The name was coined in the 1960s by Norodom Sihano ...

regime caused major social upheaval. His family were among those targeted by the Khmer Rouge because of their wealth, ethnicity and socio-economic status. The entire family was sent to a labour camp where, upon arrival, Meng and his two brothers were separated from their parents who later died of starvation. During the confusion resulting from the Vietnamese invasion of

Kampuchea Cambodia, officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country in Southeast Asia on the Indochinese Peninsula. It is bordered by Thailand to the northwest, Laos to the north, and Vietnam to the east, and has a coastline along the Gulf of Thail ...

, Meng escaped with his older brother Sophan Kith to

Phnom Penh Phnom Penh is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Cambodia, most populous city of Cambodia. It has been the national capital since 1865 and has grown to become the nation's primate city and its political, economic, industr ...

, from which they then fled for the refugee camps in

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

in 1980. In Thailand, Meng later related, “They put us in a pig farm...we slept with the pigs...we no longer existed; we had no state, nothing." Meng then immigrated to Australia settling in Canberra in 1981. Meng studied at Melba High School and then received a degree in economics from

Australian National University The Australian National University (ANU) is a public university, public research university and member of the Group of Eight (Australian universities), Group of Eight, located in Canberra, the capital of Australia. Its main campus in Acton, A ...

. He worked several jobs in Canberra including selling Kodak film and then in financial services before returning to Cambodia at the start of the

UNTAC The United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC) was a United Nations peacekeeping operation in Cambodia in 1992–93 formed following the 1991 Paris Peace Accords. This was the first occasion in which the UN List of territories ...

administration in the early 1990’s. Meng saw the devastation the war had caused and decided to stay committed to rebuilding the nation.

Career

In 1991, Meng returned to

Cambodia Cambodia, officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. It is bordered by Thailand to the northwest, Laos to the north, and Vietnam to the east, and has a coastline ...

, where he and his older brother Sophan Kith began selling furniture and office supplies to the UN and operated a Canon copiers franchise before establishing

The Royal Group The Royal Group is the premier investment and development company in Cambodia known for bringing diversified investment to the country and providing investors with the platform to run operations. The Royal Group has been at the heart of Cambodi ...

. Sophan died in 1994, and Meng took over as head of The Royal Group. Meng forged joint ventures between Cambodian and international companies. Given his dealings in importing telecommunications equipment, this gave him the opportunity in 1996 to partner with Millicom International Cellular SA to jointly own and establish the 1st mobile operator in Cambodia called CamGSM Co. Ltd (Cellcard). Meng’s strategic partnerships and investments have introduced advanced technologies and business practices to the country, enhancing its global economic integration.Fiona Kelliher, Meng’s influence extends across several critical sectors. He has been instrumental in attracting foreign investments, facilitating technological transfers, and promoting economic modernization. In 2008, Meng unseated

Sok Kong Lok Oknha Sok Kong (; born in Prey Veng Province, Cambodia) is a Khmer-Vietnamese oligarch and founder of Sokimex, a petroleum company based in Cambodia. He is considered among Cambodia's two "most successful entrepreneurs" along with Kith Men ...

as President of Cambodia's

Chamber Of Commerce A chamber of commerce, or board of trade, is a form of business network. For example, a local organization of businesses whose goal is to further the interests of businesses. Business owners in towns and cities form these local societies to a ...

. He was reelected in 2023 for his fifth 3-year term.Kang Sothear,

Other roles

* President of the ''Phnom Penh Chamber of Commerce'' 2005 - Present * Chair of ''ASEAN Business Advisory Council'' (ASEAN-BAC) 2012 & 2022 * Cambodian Chair at the ''ASEAN Business Advisory Council'' (ASEAN-BAC) * Chairman, ''GMS Business Council'', Cambodia * Chairman, ''ACMECS Business Council'', Cambodia * Chair of ''East Asia Business Council'' 2022 * Chairman of ''Lancang-Mekong Business Council''

Politics

Commentators have compared Meng to other well-known Asian tycoons including Singapore's

Lee Kuan Yew Lee Kuan Yew (born Harry Lee Kuan Yew; 16 September 1923 – 23 March 2015), often referred to by his initials LKY, was a Singaporean politician who ruled as the first Prime Minister of Singapore from 1959 to 1990. He is widely recognised ...

and

Thaksin Shinawatra Thaksin Shinawatra (, ; born 26 July 1949) is a Thai businessman and politician who was the 23rd prime minister of Thailand from 2001 to 2006. Since 2009 he has also been a citizen of Montenegro. Thaksin founded the mobile phone operator A ...

. However, Meng has downplayed suggestions he may one day stand for

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

, saying, "leave politics to the politicians". Still, Meng often accompanies Cambodia's Prime Minister

Hun Sen Samdech Hun Sen (; , Romanization of Khmer#UNGEGN, UNGEGN: ; born 5 August 1952) is a Cambodian politician and former military officer who currently serves as the List of presidents of the Senate (Cambodia), president of the Senate. He previous ...

abroad to help promote Cambodia's economic interests and is a strong supporter of Hun Sen. Meng carries the honorary title of " Neak Oknha", a title bestowed by the

Royal Family A royal family is the immediate family of monarchs and sometimes their extended family. The term imperial family appropriately describes the family of an emperor or empress, and the term papal family describes the family of a pope, while th ...

on those who make contributions of $10,000,000 or more.

Philanthropy

In 2020, Kith Meng and his spouse donated $500,000 to the Cambodian government to fight COVID-19. Meng joined hands in providing donation to the Royal Government of Cambodia to help tackle and support the landmine clearing projects across the Kingdom and the annual support towards the

Cambodian Red Cross The Cambodian Red Cross (CRC; , UNGEGN: , ALA-LC: ) is the largest humanitarian organization in Cambodia. Established on 18 February 1955, it is officially recognized by the Royal Government as the primary auxiliary to the public authorities i ...

's humanitarian projects and Kantha Bopha Children's Hospital.

Personal life

Meng is married to Mao Chamnan, and together they have four children —two sons and two daughters.

References

External links

Royal Group

Neak Oknha Kith Meng
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kith, Meng 1968 births Businesspeople in telecommunications Cambodian people of Chinese descent Living people Cambodian chief executives Australian National University alumni Year of birth missing (living people) Controversies in Cambodia Oknha