Having recently celebrated one year since the SI Presidents Appeal 2021 – 2023 ‘Opening Doors to a Bright Future’ launched in Cambodia, our partners at the Cambodia Community Dream Organisation (CCDO) have continued to work with local authorities and stakeholders to educate, empower, and enable rural women and girls to build self-confidence, develop self-esteem, and make positive life choices. This update from the CCDO comes at an exciting point in time, as SI President Maureen Maguire will soon be visiting Cambodia to see the amazing impact this project has had on the lives of women and girls across the target communities.

In particular, the last twelve months of project activities have seen significant progress toward changing the mindset of women, girls, and members of the broader community, whilst also breaking down barriers to learning and participation faced by women and girls in rural Cambodia. When we last heard from the CCDO, we learned of how far this project had exceeded our initial targets of involving 2000 women and girls in the project activities, reaching an outstanding 2814 women and girls throughout the first year! The delivery of training and development sessions, including Small to Medium Enterprise training, was also found to be widely popular, motivating an amazing 836 women and girls to manage or assist in the operation of new local businesses – introducing new income generating opportunities and inspiring the wider community in the process!

Quarter One Summary

Now that the second year of project activities are underway, the momentum of the CCDO project team is as strong as ever, as they continue to make a positive impact on the lives of women and girls across the three districts of Prasat Bakong, Angkor Thom, and Banteay Srei. Already, a further 70 sessions have been completed, addressing topics such as health, self-empowerment, advocacy and structuring, rights and gender equality, alongside public seminars, community forums, and collaborative meetings, of which 1439 women and girls have participated!

Furthermore, the project team have mentored 502 women and girls to further their own personal and professional development, supporting them in establishing their family goals, managing their finances, and even starting small enterprises; this has occurred alongside three broader media campaigns which have raised awareness on the issues faced by women and girls in Cambodia, benefiting an estimated 4803 people across the communities.

Project Achievements

>>> Training Sessions

The project team has continued working with local partners to conduct health training which offer substantial benefits for the community; health education and awareness is essential for prevention, early detection, and treatment of health-related issues. The more people know and understand about general health and diseases, the more likely they are to seek treatment of preventative care.

Over the last few months, the health training sessions have covered areas including nutrition, hygiene, sanitation, family planning, and reproductive health. Additionally, the project team has been encouraging women and young mothers to practice inclusive breast feeding with their babies, helping to keep their children healthy and build strong immune systems. The health training sessions have seen the participation of 499 women and girls, 30 volunteer health groups, 30 village chiefs, 11 commune councils for women and children (CCWC), and two health centre staff.

Alongside these sessions has been the delivery of self-empowerment training, enabling participants to recognise that they have the power to make their own choices and life and achieve their own goals, especially women and girls in poor and developing countries. This first quarter has seen a further 20 sessions for 326 marginalised women and girls, helping them with building communication and interpersonal skills, decision-making and critical thinking skills, as well as sessions on negotiation and refusal, accessing community services, and understanding their feelings and emotions. These sessions are essential for helping women and girls to understand their rights, power, and capacity for growth whilst positioning them as the agents in control of their own future.

>>> Advocacy and Structuring

As a continuation of the advocacy and awareness spreading activities of the previous year, 12 of the project’s ‘smart women’ were brought together to discuss and share their common concerns within the communities, as well as potential ways they might be resolved. The issues raised included family financial issues, domestic violence, poverty, job loss, and health problems still faced by women – those undertaking agricultural work also noted the loss of household income attributed to a lowering of produce prices alongside an increase in cost of seeds and fertiliser. Consequently, discussions between the smart women and commune chiefs brought up the idea of selling products directly to tourists as well as rotating the sale of produce seasonally, in order to ensure a good price.

The last three months have also seen 502 women and girls receive mentoring, supporting them in understanding how to set up their family goals and manage their finances, as well as how to set up small enterprises (such as growing vegetables and raising animals) which can help increase their family income. Opportunities for vocational skills training have also been offered, such as short courses at salons, hairdressers, and tailors within a provincial vocational training centre. The project team have also mentored women to raise awareness of their rights, gender equality, and of the support services available in their community, helping them to build confidence and security in their own decision making ability.

‘My husband is completely changed and he seems to give me make decide everything which I never do in the past. He told me that his friends told him about their wives are leading families. I was surprised and excited!’ Ms. Nhork Korng Tapouk village Bakong commune

>>> Community Engagement

Throughout this quarter, the project team has made further efforts to engage the wider communities in the project activities in order to spread awareness around the issues faced by women and girls, as well as to promote a change in local attitudes and behaviour. These engagement events have taken the form of media campaigns, public seminars, community forums, and collaborative meetings across the three communities, whilst also engaging local authorities, businesses, and services in the delivery.

In order to motivate and encourage women’s leadership and participation across the three communities, three media campaigns were conducted where a tuk-tuk was used to announce public services and encourage the participation of women and girls in community activities. Opportunities for productive employment were also promoted by a Microfinance officer, who was invited to the project – here loan services with low interest rates for small enterprises were offered to 28 women and girls to help them support themselves financially.

The project team also worked with local authorities to conduct four public seminars and six community forums; these sessions were particularly useful for inspiring women to pursue leadership opportunities, whilst also feeding back on local public services in a collaborative and supportive environment.

Having consistently delivered opportunities and events designed to educate, empower, and enable women and girls across Cambodia, it is clear that this project is fostering a more cohesive and collaborative community environment through which the voices of rural women and girls might be heard more clearly and definitively. As we now move into the second quarter of the second year of this project with the CCDO, the positive impact of education throughout the life course is becoming realised all the more – it’s incredibly exciting to see what further achievements can still be made by the CCDO as this project continues!