PROJECTS
Integrated Rural Development Program
Phnom Kravanh (meaning “Cardamom Mountain” in Khmer) is one of six districts in Cambodia’s Pursat province. This rural, mountainous region is sparsely populated and some parts remain heavily mined, as the district is a former fighting zone between the Cambodian government and Khmer Rouge insurgents. In Phnom Kravanh, poverty, lack of access to education, poor health and food insecurity are systematically interrelated. An insufficient diet contributes to widespread health problems among the poor majority, and the cost of poor health has pushed many rural households further into poverty. This affects both the physical and mental development of children, many of whom suffer from malnutrition and struggle to study and attend school. Furthermore, many families are simply unable to afford both the real and the opportunity costs of keeping their children in school. These issues represent the root causes of the cycle of poverty, and addressing them simultaneously presents the greatest hope for change.
In 2009, Lotus Outreach began partnering with the Cambodian Organization for Children and Development (COCD) to expand their highly successful integrated social development program in Veal Veng, Pursat to neighboring Phnom Kravanh. This program is working to alleviate poverty and its tragic consequences for thousands of marginalized villagers living in four villages of Phnom Kravanh’s Samroung commune. Specifically, the program will:
Improve Primary Healthcare
Our integrated social development program will train eight Village Health Volunteers (VHVs) who will educate their communities on hygiene, basic sanitation, malaria prevention, and preventative healthcare practices in exchange for a small monthly food stipend. Twenty-four latrines will be installed in areas where there are no toilets and 150 poor families who currently use contaminated water sources will be provided with ceramic water filters. The program will also print posters, billboards, banners, t-shirts and caps containing messages and illustrated narratives on preventative healthcare practices, such as boiling water, hand washing and sleeping under mosquito nets.
Improve Access to Education
This program will improve access to education by providing scholarships to 50 vulnerable children who would not otherwise attend school. These scholarships will cover uniforms, school supplies, monthly food stipends, fees for extra classes, and transportation. The provision of scholarship packages will be managed by trained community-based Education Working Groups, consisting of volunteer stakeholders such as local government officials, teachers, principals and parents. These working groups will ensure the local ownership and effective day-to-day monitoring of the program. The educational component will also feature three-day annual school enrollment campaigns in each of the four villages which will increase community awareness on the importance of education. Posters, leaflets, t-shirt and caps will be designed and printed with messages on children’s rights and the role of education as a catalyst for human development.
Improve Food Security and Income Generation
This program will offer alternative opportunities to villagers through the provision of agricultural resources/training and microloans. This will be achieved by establishing “Self Help Groups” in each of the four target villages which will be tasked with creating a “Village Development Plan” to improve their communities. The Self Help Groups will be provided with Working Capital Assistance to create a revolving social fund which will supply low-interest loans to group members and poor villagers to start small businesses. The interest will then be used to implement the Village Development Plan, which may include community construction projects or other income-generating initiatives such as preserving and packaging naturally-growing produce to be sold year-round at markets outside of the district. Additionally, the program will provide 150 vulnerable families with cash crop and vegetable seeds, farming tools and basic agricultural training so they can achieve food security and generate sufficient income to support their families. In the direst circumstances, families will be provided with emergency food support to sustain them while their new venture gets off the ground.
Partner: Cambodian Organization for Children and Development (COCD)
Supported by: Ronald McDonald House Charities |
