Gender Equality Cambodia Project #12374

Protect 20 girls from abuse in Cambodia

by Cambodian Women's Development Agency

Project Report | Sep 29, 2015
Crafting and hospitality lessons for our girls

By Lisa Neuner | Communications and Fundraising Volunteer

Flower girl

Preparations for the internationally celebrated Peace Day helped our girls discover their more creative sides. The team at Skateistan Cambodia showed the girls how to make intricate paper flowers to be used in Skateistan Cambodia's Peace Day ceremony on September 25^th2015.

Our girls quickly picked up the required techniques and joined their peers and other volunteers in producing a considerable number of colorful flowers. Each of our girls dedicated one flower to an especially important person in their lives. SreyNuth* for example, gave her flower to her mother, saying that she loved her very much. Chanthana* went wild with colors, creating green, blue and purple flowers in a single afternoon.

Besides flower-making, the girls enjoyed many a skating session over the course of the past summer months. One of the older girls in the shelter, Rothana* has started to volunteer 2-3 times per week as a skating instructor. Being responsible for the safety and progress of younger kids, she says she feels empowered and more confident in her own abilities.

Several workshops held at the Cambodian Women's Development Agency gave the girls a unique opportunity to learn more about the topic of hospitality. With tourism being one of Cambodia's most important industries, these skills cannot be valued highly enough.

The girls' shelter mother instructed them in preparing a variety of traditional dishes, ranging from savory pastries and meat-filled buns to sweet coconut jelly for the workshop participants. Besides perfecting their knowledge on general food preparation, they were also able to learn the art of carving appealing designs into watermelons, pine apples and rambutan (a kind of lychee commonly found in South-East Asia) as well as correctly displaying these fruit with a variety of condiments including spicy-sweet chili sugar.

The girls enjoyed these activities a lot as there was always some fresh fruit that could be snacked on during the preparation process.

Thank you! As always, these activities were made possible due to generous donations from CWDA's donors from around the world. As our girls continue to strive we look forward to meeting the responsible, well-trained and kind adults they will become.

*not their real names

Teaching instructor

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May 27, 2015
The girls love to skateboard!

By Amy Ashlee | Fundraising and Communications Volunteer

The girls in their gear

CWDA has been collaborating with Skateistan Cambodia since 2012. Skateistan’s mission is to use skateboarding as a tool for empowerment, to create new opportunities and the potential for change for vulnerable youth. As it’s second project after its monumental success in Afghanistan, Skateistan is now impacting the lives of many youths, including our girls, here in Cambodia.

Every Thursday without fail the girls attend a two hour session at the skateboarding park in Phnom Penh. Getting in the tuktuk on the dot of 1.30pm in order to arrive in plenty of time, they jitter with excitement. Arriving at the park, it is easy to understand why.

The sense of community and empowerment felt when walking into the skateboarding park is overwhelming. Skateboarding has become an outlet for creative expression for the girls; they have so much fun showing off their skills on the different ramps and learning new tricks – and they are very good! The girls are well and affectionately known here by the instructors and other students, having been some of the first students of Skateistan Cambodia.

Watching them, it is clear how much they cherish the opportunity each week. Not only does having such an unique hobby increase self-confidence, it develops trust, friendship and valuable life skills such as leadership and teamwork.

Soryah*, one of the older girls, says that skateboarding gives her the opportunity to “escape” and to relieve her stress through exercise. Meymey* loves going each week to meet up with her friends and always has so much fun.

Sokcchoeun, the safe shelter house mother, told me how proud she is of the girls, and that whenever there are competitions people remark on how they skateboard just as well as the boys!

Donations continue make this weekly opportunity possible for the girls, covering the costs of transportation each week and to skateboarding events, as well as appropriate clothing for their hobby.

Everyone at CWDA want to sincerely thank you for your continuing support.

*Not their real names

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Feb 20, 2015
Project report

By Sotheary Reilly | Project Leader

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