A new joint project aims to fill critical gaps in the quality and accessibility of essential services for children, women and families in some of Cambodia’s most remote and underserved areas.

Cambodia, China and UNICEF are partnering to improve quality inclusive education, health, nutrition and hygiene for Cambodia’s most vulnerable children.

“Children are the future of the country and the nation. We should care for the healthy growth of children together. They are the inheritors of the traditional friendship between China and Cambodia and the successors of global development,” said Wang Wenbin, Chinese ambassador to Cambodia, during the March 5 launch of the project.

According to a joint press release, the partnership aims to enhance foundational literacy and numeracy skills for the country’s youngest learners. 

It will provide supplies, materials and knowledge to 10,000 teachers and 80,000 students in pre-primary and primary schools to improve early-grade and inclusive learning. 

Support from China Aid will strengthen the capacity of 600 health personnel across 200 health facilities and 800 Village Health Support Group members to provide quality health and nutrition services, including on infant and young child feeding, growth monitoring and the detection of child wasting.

“Healthcare workers and teachers will also be supported to adopt healthy and nurturing care behaviours and monitor children’s growth, critical to decreasing the risk of childhood malnutrition. This will reach 65,000 children under five and 30,000 school children,” said the statement.

It added that to address urgent gaps in access to water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) services, critical hand hygiene supplies will be provided to vulnerable households living in flood-prone areas, where the risk of contamination and spread of disease is high.

Hand hygiene supplies will also be provided to all 3,000 community pre-schools in the country, benefiting around 60,000 children. 

“We hope that children in the most vulnerable communities in Cambodia can feel the warmth and care from the Chinese people through this project,” said Wenbin.

“China is willing to work with Cambodia and relevant international organisations to continue to strengthen support for the education and health of children in the most vulnerable communities in Cambodia under the Global Development and South-South Cooperation Fund,” he added.

According to the joint release, many children in Cambodia, particularly those living in hard-to-reach areas, continue to face challenges in accessing quality education, healthcare and clean water. 

“National learning assessments for Grade 6 in 2021 revealed that 45 per cent of pupils were below basic proficiency in Khmer, and three in four students (74 per cent) were below basic proficiency in mathematics. One in ten children under five still suffer from wasting (acute malnutrition), which has remained unchanged in the past decade,” it said.

“Despite improvements in access to WASH services, one third of healthcare facilities do not have access to basic hand washing services, and 78 per cent do not have access to basic sanitation facilities. WASH access is further jeopardised by Cambodia’s vulnerability to climate-related hazards,” it added.

Will Parks, UNICEF Cambodia representative, explained the importance of the partnership.

“It is a critical time for Cambodia’s children. While we have made great strides in their lives and well-being, intensifying global challenges are threatening their futures, and it is the most vulnerable children who risk being left behind — at school, at home and in their communities, he said.

“We are grateful to the Government of China for their commitment to working together with UNICEF and the Royal Government of Cambodia to protect the children who most need our support. Together, we can ensure that every child, regardless of their background or circumstance, fulfils their right to learn, grow and develop to their full potential,” he added.