Cambodia project profile

Oudong ADP (map not to scale)

Education
As a result of the Pol Pot regime’s oppressive attitude to education in the 1970s, there are not nearly enough classrooms or teachers to cope with the growing desire for learning.

World Vision has helped build a new brick primary school and equip it with locally-made desks. Communities are keen to do the work; they only need the project to supply cement, roofing iron and nails. Schools can be used for literacy classes too. World Vision has also established pre-schools.

Health
Health workers check the children regularly and carry out immunization campaigns to eradicate dangerous childhood diseases.To reduce the incidence of water-borne diseases, World Vision is digging new wells and covering existing wells to provide a clean supply of water.

Water
Like most communities in monsoon countries, Oudong district either has too much water or not enough. Even when they have water, it is often unsafe for drinking. The ADP helps people make ponds, wells and small dams. Ponds provide water for irrigation. The new facilities will also make duck and fish raising possible, with more protein for family diets.Women especially will benefit, as they often have to walk long distances to get water.

Agriculture
Each village has a farmers’ club comprising men and women elected by the people. The farmers visit neighbouring centres to learn from each other, and the Government appoints and pays agricultural advisers for the clubs. World Vision supports them with technical advice, subsidises their training and facilitates their village visits. The immediate goals are to increase crop yields, provide dry season fodder for cattle and reduce animal mortality.

World Vision, in co-operation with the New Zealand Government, has funded the construction and repair of culverts and dams. Irrigation control has resulted in a doubling of rice crops and reduction of food shortage from six months to less than two months a year.

The establishment of a cow bank means that poorer families are able to ‘borrow’ a cow to breed calves from. The cow is then returned to World Vision so another family can benefit. Rice banks enable farmers to borrow rice until harvest, at which time they pay back their ‘loan’ with a small interest.

Income generation
Farmers’ clubs have revolving loans to fund agriculture and related business activities. Many families hopelessly in debt to moneylenders can get out of that situation through a low- interest community revolving-loan. Village councils receive training in accounting and loan management.

Leadership development
Through human rights and gender education, the men and women of Oudong have gained a greater mutual understanding. Women now take an active role in community decision-making and the people realise the need to contribute their ideas, labour and resources in the development process. This is important, as sustainable development will only happen as the community learns to solve their problems by themselves and self-manage all their programmes.





World Vision and the people of Oudong envisage that by 2009, the community’s development will be at a level that no longer requires World Vision assistance. We will keep you updated on their progress.