Learning Journeys (Cambodia)Foundation

School Aid Projects

- Achieving Universal Primary Education (UN 2nd Millennium Goal)

The Cambodian educational landscape since 1975 was destroyed when schools were abolished and educators were either sent to work in the fields or killed. Until today the educational system has still not recovered especially in the rural areas. Images of children crammed in plain squalid classrooms, sharing desk and in tattered uniforms, often without shoes, attended by poorly paid teachers who are usually unequipped with proper teaching materials are common. Some schools are fortunate to have generous sponsors who donated stationery, school bags, food ration, toilets, playground and even a modest library. Otherwise these facilities are often absent. Schools also lack a canteen or a secured environment as they are never fenced except for the front gate, inviting the unnecessary intruder. Electricity and piped water are generally non existence, and for some schools, rain harvesting is a common practice unless a donor sponsors a pump well.

Learning Journeys (Cambodia) Foundation collaborates with many NGOs and visiting volunteer groups to help and improve the conditions of local schools in rural Cambodia. If you are planning to visit Cambodia especially Siem Reap, please consider aiding any of the following schools **:

** a number of schools has been followed though by LJ Cambodia with the generosity of visiting groups. Our sincere gratitude and appreciation for making lives better for our children. Please contact us for update if you are keen to assist a school. This list is non exhaustive and may not contain some schools we have recently met

Know of any School?

If you know or hear of any school that needs aid, please let us know. Tell us the school name, location (commune & district) and a contact person details as well as yours. Tell us the level of assistance required. We will send our inspection team to assess and recommend how we can help the school. You will receive a report from us and read about the progress of the school development on our website.

Over the years working with volunteers, we learn that the sky is not the limit. Volunteers have come forth to offer plenty of ideas on projects to help our communities. Sometimes we think the ideas are limitless. If you have any project idea that you wish to share, please let us know. We may not qualify your idea initially but who knows, it may be the most wonderful solution in helping our communities.

Here is a menu of popular project themes that you may wish to adopt before submitting your ideas:

• Clean Water – more than 2/3 of rural schools do not have access to safe drinking water

• Hygiene – washing hands with soap can reduce diarrheal diseases by 40%

• Sanitation – toilets are often in state of disrepair or lacking. 10% of children die beforea year old due to preventable, waterborne diseases

• Education – an everyday scene at many rural schools shows absence of stationery, text books, shoes and school bags going hand in hand with tattered uniforms

• School Improvement – many schools remain in disrepair and without electricity, piped water and teaching materials

• Nutrition – children go to school often hungry due to lack of or insufficient food rations. School programme does not have access to sustainable food generation programme to achieve self sufficiency

• Health – medical officers do not visit schools regularly to check on children's general health. Often schools do not have any first aid kit and lack knowledge of modern self medication

• Sports/Physical Education – almost non existence in rural school curriculum due to lack of equipment and facilities

• Livelihood – with decades of civil war, communities lack basic skills and knowledge in creating sustainable livelihood programme at home