Early marriage … sometimes for girls as young as 15 or 16 (or even younger) is a clear-cut pathway into continuing poverty. The pressures of tradition and the need to help support the family can be HUGE. All too often girls in Cambodian villages end up in early marriage long before they have the ability to understand the impacts this decision will have on the rest of their lives. Our partner, the Kamboo Project Organization (KPO) is tackling this problem head on.
Here’s what KEO Somalita (Lita) the KPO Director has to say about early marriage.
Way too many village kids are falling into the trap of early marriage. With funding from the SE Asia Foundation, we first launched this project at the Ta Ei Primary School, where it received overwhelmingly positive feedback from students, teachers, and the community.
We believe both genders play different but equally important roles in addressing early marriage, so our project engages them equally. The program tackles the root causes and consequences of early marriage. Students learn about the benefits of delaying marriage and the risks of marrying young. We have experienced speakers sharing real-life stories for deeper understanding. In the final stage, students will run their own community awareness campaigns, spreading the message about the importance of education and the dangers of early marriage.
Lita goes on to say
Building on this success we expanded the program to the Kna Por High School in the Sonikum District, about 80 km from Siem Reap. There, 90 students from Grades 11 and 12 – both female and male – are engaged and participating.
We hope this project will inspire these 90 students to continue their education beyond Grade 12 and build brighter futures. The campaign will also give community members valuable insight into why education matters and how early marriage can hold young people back. We are now gathering information from other schools to expand this vital program where it is most needed.
Here’s a short video of the training — and the voice of one of the participants
I hope you’re getting the message here.
What you’re hearing above is a BIG thank you to YOU —
the generous donors that make our work possible.
Actually, it’s hundreds of Cambodian girls all saying
Thank You
We’re really proud to partner with Loung and the entire Kambo team, working together to improve education and life opportunities for so many marginalized kids living in underserved Cambodian villages.
If you’re interested knowing about the work that our other Cambodian NGO partners are doing in service to those most in need, you can click here.
Life is good — at least for some of us it is.
Others need a bit of help.
Together we can provide exactly that.
At the SE Asia Foundation we do not simply “help” people
We Help People Help Themselves
That is our focus
That is our commitment
That is where our actions show up
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