Cambodia. The name conjures rich imagery of temples, tropical landscapes and the ancient Khmer people. It also brings to mind the sad legacy of the killing fields, Pol Pot, and a cruel regime that robbed the land of a generation of learning and growth. Now, thirty-two years after the demise of the Khmer Rouge, Cambodia struggles to free itself of the shackles of its cold war past and find a place among the wealthier neighboring countries. Its fourteen million people are still beset by poor social indicators of development making it one of the world’s poorest States.

In 1997 Andrew Morris, head of the Cambodian health services of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) stated: "I don't think there is a good outlook for this generation, the hope is for the Cambodians not yet born." That new generation is now here. A Cambodian child is more likely to die before the age of one year than a child in any other country in the region. In numbers, this means that nearly one in ten Cambodian children die before reaching their first birthday. More than 14 percent of Cambodian children will die before they reach five years old.

The main causes of such high mortality rates are preventable diseases such as diarrhea and respiratory infections. Maternal mortality is also high. Malnutrition affects most Cambodian children, and 45 percent show moderate or severe stunting.

Another serious threat to well-being in Cambodia are landmines; Cambodia is one of the most heavily-bombed countries in the world, and unexploded ordnance poses a grave threat, particularly in rural areas.

Thailand, Cambodia’s western neighbor, represents opportunity for poor Cambodians who face starvation and an uncertain future at home. Poor Cambodians migrate by the thousands across the border to find menial day labor jobs in Bangkok and other cities in the hopes of providing for themselves and family members who remain in Cambodia. Young women and men who travel to neighboring Thailand and Malaysia in search of work are too often lured into the exploitative sex industry. The high risk occupation usually results in disease, including HIV/AIDS, and personal hardship on both the individuals and their families back home.

In the search for answers to Cambodia’s social dilemmas, one needs to go no further than an age-old solution to keeping the life of the community together: a reliable source of clean water.

Communities that enjoy a sustainable source of clean and safe water can reap the benefits of nearly all aspects of social endeavor. Agriculture thrives, local industry is sustained and the cycle of schooling can be maintained. Without water, people are on constant move seeking the basic building block of an agrarian based economy and quality of life provided for through basic hygiene and sanitation practices. 

The solution also lies in the adoption of good hygiene and sanitation behaviors. Adequate sanitation plays a significant role in keeping children, especially girls, in school and out of the exploitative sex industry. As the CEO of a Cambodian development organization states, “when girls can use the latrine at school with privacy and in dignity, they tend to remain in school and not seek work outside of Cambodia.”

Lifewater has recently entered into a partnership agreement with a local impact partner to explore creative and context appropriate means for WASH solutions. Through this new partnership we will help Cambodians build lasting and vibrant communities where parents will be empowered to build a future of hope for Cambodia’s newest generation and children will enjoy the benefits of a stable community.

Your contributions will be used to help Lifewater and its indigenous impact partner begin incorporating an aggressive solution to the water and sanitation needs of communities where children are at high risk for human trafficking.

*Project fundraising goal is approximate and dependent on the full scope of work we plan to pursue.

Summer 2011: A New Partnership

Unexploded land mines and cross-border human trafficking are real and potentially deadly threats which Cambodians face while fetching water. Access to clean water and sanitation will prevent illness from water-borne disease and eliminate the need to walk hours each day in search of water, thus reducing the risk of contact with unexploded mines and vulnerability to human trafficking. 

Lifewater staff recently traveled to Poipet, Cambodia to meet with the director of Cambodian Hope Organization (CHO), a grass-root Christian organization run by passionate and dedicated Cambodians who are determined to transform their nation. A partnership was formed at this meeting and the Health & Hope for at Risk Children in Cambodia project was born. This project will have a substantial impact on more than 4,000 children and adults. The project will provide one deep-water well and 30 hand-dug wells. In addition, Lifewater and CHO are partnering to build a community center where the trainings will take place. This community center will also be used for education, church meetings, and other community-driven activities. CHO will work to implement and translate Lifewater’s curriculum and trainings in a sustainable and viable way that will impact thousands. Funds are currently being raised to initiate this project and to help place Cambodia on a safe and prosperous path.

Spring 2011: Cambodia's Ongoing Tragedy

by Joe Harbison, Executive Director

Hundreds of villages that line the border between Cambodia and Thailand are hidden out of sight from the neon lit casinos and shops dedicated to fine dining and luxury goods. It is in these villages that the chore of daily survival goes on. People live in crude shelters made of rough-hewn timber, bamboo, and tarpaulins housing families of up to ten members. Children whose parents cross the border illegally are left to fend for themselves, sometimes in the care of siblings as young as ten years old. Most drink from contaminated streams.

Thailand represents opportunity for poor Cambodians who face starvation and an uncertain future at home. Poor Cambodians migrate by the thousands across the border to find menial day labor jobs in Bangkok and other cities in the hopes of providing for themselves and family members who remain in Cambodia.

On a recent visit, I spoke with Sundet, a patient at Poipet’s CDC ward. She spoke to me in a barely audible whisper, her face ashen as she made a feeble attempt to eat a bowl of rice and vegetables. Despite her wasted condition, a result of HIV/AIDS, she attempted a wan smile as she told me of her hopes to support her family in Cambodia while she worked in Thailand. “I went to Thailand to find work and support my family a few years ago”, she told me. “Now I am too sick to work and no one to care for me, what’s to become of my family now?” She asked.

Sundet’s plight is tragically common in Cambodia which has the regions highest HIV/AIDS infections. Young women and men who travel to neighboring Thailand and Malaysia in search of work are too often lured into the exploitative sex industry. Working in these industries often result in nothing but disease and personal hardship on the individual and families back home. For most of Cambodia’s HIV/AIDS patients, the burden of care will fall upon their families, already tasked with the daily need to bring in sustenance for needy families.

Talking with dozens of individuals like Sundet, whose lives are devastated as they take drastic measures to help their families survive, the calling to work in Cambodia felt strong and clear. I am convinced that Lifewater’s expertise can help Cambodian communities create environments where their children can thrive and eliminating the need to seek for means of survival elsewhere.