Enable 60 Cambodian children to go to school

The new school year started in Cambodia in January 2021, delayed from November 2020 due to the need to provide some 'catch up' time after seven months of school closures. Children are happy to be back at school and adjusting to wearing masks and washing their hands more than ever before!

With the start of the new school year came the confirmation of the children who would participate in our Conditional Cash Payments (CCP) program this year. Our team has worked with schools and the local education authorities to identify 83 children from very low-income families who will receive our support this year. These children are at risk of dropping out of school to help earn money for their families because the financial situation is so dire. We provided the first part of a small payment to each family in January and will pay the second part of the payment in May, conditional on the child demonstrating at least 80% attendance at school between January and May. 

The small grant of £48 is equivalent to more than one month’s income for most of the beneficiary families. Every family signs an agreement committing to send their child to school and supporting them to progress through the grades. This is read to parents and carers to ensure that even those with low literacy understand the agreement.

If children are absent from school for more than two consecutive days, the CCP Project team will call or visit the family and help work through any issues preventing school attendance. The dialogue we create with families and the regular support we offer sets us apart from other similar initiatives and the money enables families to prioritise education over work for their children and buy books, uniform and shoes so that they have everything they need to attend school with dignity.

The Covid-19 pandemic brought new challenges for these families. 75% of poor, rural households said their income had reduced by 50% due to Covid-19, making school attendance more difficult and exacerbating risks for the most vulnerable children, many of whom have been unable to access distance learning resources (UNICEF, 2020). We feel that this program is more important this year than ever before and we would like to thank you for your support.

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The COVID-19 pandemic continues to affect our beneficiaries in Cambodia, as well as the education system as a whole.

Unfortunately, the country is experiencing a rapid increase in unemployment due to the significant decrease in tourism and subsequent closures of hotels, restaurants, and tourist attractions, and this is leading to widespread poverty and the need for families to prioritise their concerns about having enough money to feed the family. Schools re-opened in Cambodia in early September and the Ministry of Education have declared the period September to December as a 'catch up learning' period. They are encouraging teachers to teach the concepts that should have been taught between March and August, so that children are not left behind and so that they are able to successfully progress to the next Grade. However, schooling looks very different: new measures introduced to combat coronavirus have seen classes split in half (sometimes into thirds) and children only attending school up to three mornings a week. This means Cambodian children are in school for 10 hours a week. Children in Australia, the UK and Ireland are typically in school for over 25 hours a week.

Early indications show us that the children on our Conditional Cash Payments program in Angkor Thom have returned to school for this catch up learning period and we are working closely with school principals and parents to support this to continue. The new school year will start in January 2021 (delayed from November 2020) and we will provide the next CCP payments to families later in January. Of course, this program has never been more important, not only because these small payments will help to keep a child in school but also they will help to relieve some of the pressure that families under financial strain are feeling.

Here is one example of how the CCP program is supporting children and their families:

Ry Sokha* is in grade 5 and has been on the CCP Programme since grade 1. The uniform and school materials his family can afford to buy for him using the grant has given him the confidence to attend school regularly. Sokha studies intently at school and home, and with his parents’ encouragement, he has become an outstanding student. They want to support him through university and his mother is keen Sokha becomes a doctor. She said, “I still encourage my son to go to school regularly, monitor his work and support him at home because education will bring him a better life.” Sokha’s teacher said, “He always shows a good level of discipline in class and works hard.”

*Name changed for privacy purposes