Home About Us The Problem Projects Self Help Achievements Cambodia Gallery Support Us Contact Us Thank Yous	PROJECT PROGRESS REPORT For Quarter Ending: 31 March 2006   Country: Cambodia   Project Number:   CB-037A   Project Name: Promoting Civil   Society Transformation (PCST)   Submitted by: Pin Bunthan   PCST Project Manager   Date: 31 March 2006   Approved by: Mounh Sarath,   CVD's Executive Director I. SUMMARY OF OVERALL PROGRESS OF THE PROJECT DURING THE QUARTER This is the narrative of the activities accomplished by the Promoting Civil Society Transformation project (PCST), known as CB-037A, for the first 6 months - 1st October 2005 to 31th.March 2006. The promotion and transformation of civil society, has made through two main approaches, promoting civil society and community development (community support). One of the main strategies in accomplishing this project is to encourage the participation of children in democratic civil society interaction of club members, village association (self-help group) and government structures at village level. In order to achieve the overall goal of uplifting the children to have full access to the understanding of civil society and democratic atmosphere, CVD designed an inconceivable strategy which the implementation of activities are being conducted by the children. Many of the actions were persuading via the flow of children’s clubs and group works. This strategy is laid out to meet the overall purpose of the clubs where children are to form themselves into independence groups within their respective villages so that they can meet and discuss their day-to-day concerns, trust building and confidences amongst the children at the village level. Up to date the project set up 12 children's clubs in 12 target villages in fiscal year 2005 (October 2004 to September 2005). The clubs' activities have been continued smoothly and the members have been significantly increased. It is noticed that many new members registered join in the club and involve their regular activities within their villages effectively. The members have now increased from 261 to 347 for this reporting period. 1. Children's Clubs: The existing clubs members have regularly met once every week at the location where the children can easily accessed. The activities included questions and answers pertaining the child rights, child labor, child trafficking, sport leisure, folk story telling and sharing experiences among themselves. The activities were managed and carried out by the club leaders with facilitation from temporary school teachers of their respective village. Staff conducted alternative visit schedule once per week to individual club to monitor the ongoing club’s activities and conduct needs assessment where appropriate. During the visit, project staffs were requested to spot checking and reviewing on lessons or topics related to child rights, child related issue that may affect their daily lives and their education. Because of the poverty of the village members and the lack of entertaining facilities within the village, CVD with the support from TDH-NL, made some little amount fund contribution for sporting supplies i.e. foot balls, volley balls, tennis rackets and jumping robs available to the clubs so that the children can play during they attend to the regular club meetings. These sport and leisure activities are made available to entertain the children as most of them had less or even no time to enjoy their childhood. These sport materials were supplied annually and can be replaced when broken. Club members who were known to be very poor and need basic supported such as school uniforms and learning material, the project has put aside some budget for the assistance, where appropriated. Club members were encouraged to join Human Rights Day and the Day against Child Trafficking organized by the project in Somlot district. As stated in annual report of fiscal year 2005, the project had now phased out its activities from one school and a club in Peam Ta village. Now the project has set up a new school and club in Saong village, which was started since October 2005 onward. Three clubs will be phased out next year, Kantout, Beng Run and Samlot villages. Clubs activities will continue with facilitation from school teachers and club leaders. Club members are introduced with basic knowledge of child rights, child labor and anti-child trafficking. Club members are also access to sport leisure, story telling and sharing experiences among their group. Most children in these three villages (mentioned above) joined club activities; they are equipped with basic concept of civil society and are expected to propagate widely among children in their villages. To pass information from one to another child does not require gathering children into one place; it needs just to share what they know to each individual. It means that the members of the old clubs can share what they have learned from clubs to other children in the villages. The project anticipates that there are needed of such activities in other village of Samlot district and it is the project’s objective that it should offer chance to other children in other places to get to know these important information. Two more clubs will be set up within the next funding round. Two clubs will be established, one in Svay Chrum and the other O Choam Krom village of Kompong La Pao commune Samlot district. The project conducted life-skill training to club members in Oh Sngout village, on January 19th 2006. There were 27 children attended basic agriculture skill training. The topics of the training included compost fertilizer making, general effect of chemical fertilizer and its consequent.       Click to enlarge Statistic of children in clubs No. Village name No. of club members Total Remarks Boys Girls 1   Kan Tout 17 13 30   2   Beng Run 17 18 35   3   Srae Andong 22 27 49   4   Chhork Roka 8 12 20   5   Saong (Chhaong) 10 10 20   New club to replace Peam Ta 6   Samlaut 13 9 22   7   Tasanh Cheng 13 12 25   8   Don Trek (Tasanh Tbong) 11 19 30   9   O Sngout 18 9 27   10   Prey Rum Chek 12 19 31   11   O Tatem 17 9 26   12   Anlong Pouk 15 17 32     Total 173 174 347   2. Education/Awareness (Temporary Schools): Completed enrollment the students for scholastic year 2005 – 2006, and there were 525 children registered for this year. Due to only one class existed in our project supported schools, this year some schools have to divide into two classes, grade 1 in the morning and grade 2 is taken place in the afternoon. School supplies and uniforms were provided to students in 11 temporary schools. Each set of school supplies consists of text book (literacy and numeracy), writing book, slate, chalk, ruler and pencil, eraser and school bag). To ensure the quality of education at our supported temporary schools to meet the national standard curriculum, the project works in close cooperation with District Office of Education (DOE) to include the project contracted teachers in any special the teacher training, i.e. pedagogy, methodology and other educational related skills. 4 day training was conducted from 27th to 30th November 2005 to all project contracted teachers, which trainers were from the Provincial Education Youth and Sport Department. The topics included: Preparation of lesson plan, production of teaching materials, class decoration, school structure, add extra hours for poor-scored (slow learners) students, pedagogy, student present record and follow up, and other teaching related skills. Following up was conducted regularly to each temporary school to monitor the teachers’ activities such as student attendance list, weekly teaching schedule, weekly lesson plan and to advise teachers where appropriate; i.e basic understanding on general environment at schools sites, child rights, anti – child trafficking information, child labor, basic sanitation in school compound, personal hygiene and leisure activities. Regular teachers meeting were conducted once every month to update the school activities to share ideas, lessons learnt, experience encountered, raise issues/concerns and plan for the following month. The project is looking at integrates all project temporary school into government school structure. So that the teachers could access to a closer liaison and cooperation with government school principals in each respected commune. On the other hand the contracted teacher can have full access to any training conducted by District Education Office and eventually be handed over their management to the government, where appropriated. Provided teaching materials to the project contracted teachers as per recommendation from the District Education Office to ensure an adequate skill to be applied and effectively used to teach the children. All project supported school teachers attended the monthly meeting with government school teachers at the district Education Office to report the school activities and to learn the experience from school directors. The project erected signboards in the front of all project supported schools. The community support wooden posts and labor while the project supported paint, nails and boards. Methodology training to teachers was held in March 2006, for the project contracted teachers. The topics included: teaching talent, basic technique of producing teaching materials and motivation skills and encouragement tactic for the children to attend class. Provided teaching materials to the project supported schools, the materials included, books, pens, pencils, chalks, rulers, erasers, calendars, scissors, towels, water buckets. Completed repairing schools in two villages, Ta Sanh Cheng and Chork Rokar (repaired tables in Ta Sanh Cheng School and walls of Chork Rokar School). The project plans to include in future project proposal for the next round to build a three-class semi- temporary school in Oh Totem village, Ta Sanh commune Samlot district, where the project built a small temporary school and it is now in a very poor condition. Hundreds of children are in need of education facilities. The project also plan to set up two temporary schools in Svay Chrum and Oh Choam Krorm village of Kompong La Pov commune where there is no government school existed in that village. The most successful factors of setting up the temporary schools in the very remote areas have proven that the percentage of illiterate/uneducated children has decreased, even a few of them abandoned classes after completed 2nd grade because of poverty, but they at least are able to read and write. Another successful factor is that all the project supported schools are fully recognized by the Government Education Office. The project hired teachers are also supported by the Government in term of capacity building to strengthen the quality of education.       Click to enlarge Statistic of students at temporary schools Scholastic year 2005 - 2006 No. School name Grade No. of students Total Remarks Boys Girls 1   Kan Tout 1 12 10 22   2   Beng Run 1 22 19 41   3   Samlaut 1 14 6 20   4   Chhork Roka 1 10 13 23   5   Saong (Chhaong) 1 18 21 39   New school 6   Ta Sanh Cheng 1 10 8 18   2 6 7 13 7   O Sngout 1 22 8 30   8   Srae Andong 1 20 19 39   2 20 12 32 9   O Totem 1 30 23 53   2 13 18 31 3 14 18 32 4 14 15 29 5 20 8 28 10   Prey Rumchek 1 14 6 20   2 20 9 29 11   Ta Sanh Tbong (Don Trek) 1 14 12 26     Total   293 232 525   1. Self-help group establishment: Self help group is an autonomous group where members are selected amongst the very poor villagers. They are introduced to self-help concept, saving, micro-credit and team working for their common vision of self- reliance and sufficiency. Team leaders or facilitators are equipped with basic skills of small business management and leadership training and sense of solidarity. The group members can access to credit scheme (known as Working Capital) with lower interest rate where they can use such capital for generate extra income or increasing their farming activities capacity. Saving is another method which introduce to the self-help group members. Each individual can save their fund base on criteria set among the group and their saving is recorded by both, the individual member and the group leader. They can withdraw their saved fund when they need money for any emergency situation such as short of food, member of the family get sick. It is the individual saving, but the saving money is kept by group leader and record by both to ensure accuracy and transparency. Their saving is made flexible to make donation/contribution to the very poor and in need for urgent assistance, where all the members are set up the common approval. During this reporting period, the project achieved some significant tasks as following:- Conducted follow up to monitor cow bank activities of self help groups. During this regular spot check, the project staff had advised to group members to take care of cows and feed them well. Of 39 cows, 15 have already been bred, 9 cows has calf, 1 cow aborted (calf died, but the mother cow is healthy) while the others will mate soon. On 14 December 2005, one cow, raised by Mrs. Sok Touch in Srae Andong village, got sick and the Self- help group leader reported to project staff for intervention. Cow died at 8:00 am of the same day even the district veterinary help in but cannot rescue of such acute illness. The veterinary stated that it was a Sharbon disease and recommended that the dead cow must be buried. Anyhow, 38 cows others are in good health. Follow up the revolving loan of self help groups. 14,574,900 riels (US $ 3,643.73) was collected from the self help group members in the 10 target villages, Srae Andong, Don Trek, Beng Run, Kantout, O Totem, Anlong Pourk, Ta Sanh Cheng, Ta sanh Tbong, O Sngout and Prey Rum chek. Released revolving loan of US $ 4,745.73 to 153 families in 17 self help groups in 10 target villages. The cash credit is used for prepare land for crop plantation and seed purchasing. It is reported that many villagers in target villages (out side the group) are eager to join self help group activities. The main reason identified were because these villagers could see the impact and positive results that the members of the groups are in a very good structure that they are committed to help each other and looking for their group’s better prospecting in the future. In this regard, PCST project staffs leave this matter to the group members and their leaders to make the decision if they want to increase the members in their groups. It is to emphasize that being a member of the group is not just benefiting of new skill learnt, able to help other where needed, gaining a unity feeling amongst members and working collaboratively within their village, but it is a great advantage that the member will be another person who is volunteering to put in his/her times, efforts and moral to reestablishing or restoring their social structure at their village level. Based on a recent impact assessment made by project staff, we reveals that self help groups in these the three villages are capable and fully manageable their own groups/activies. It is therefore, in the coming year, the project will phase out its community development work from the three villages, namely Srae Andong, Beng Run and Kantout villages. Within the second half of this year, the project will focus on processing of phase out stage from those villages and reviewing on some guidelines which facilitate the handing over mechanism effectively. The project will alternately conduct spot checking to group structures, include their management, financial control system, regulation, forms and specimens that are required to be existed within for group functioning purpose. We plan for at least once every quarter to see the progress of group after phasing out. Two self help groups will be set up in the next project cycle in two new target villages, Svay Chrum and Oh Choam Krorm of Kompong La Pov commune.       Click to enlarge 2. Civil Society Promotion: The project is in good cooperation with local authorities. The project organized a Human Rights Day celebration, 10 December 2005 in Somlot district. 132 students from 4 project supported schools, 200 people in Ta Sanh commune, 11 teachers from 11 project supported schools articipated in the events. Organized Anti Child Trafficking Day on 15 December 2005, 214 children from project supported and government schools, 56 adults, including villagers, teachers and authorities participated in the event. Met with authorities and related district officers on 14 October 2005 to present project achievement results in FY 2005. The participants are local authorities include, village heads, commune council, district leader, chief of district education office and chief of district social affair. Trained self help group members in Anlong Purk, Tasanh Cheng, O Sngout, Prey Rum Chek, Ta Sanh Tbong, O Totem and Don Trek villages, 80 group members in basic agriculture skill and land management. Trained group leaders on role and responsibility of group members and group leaders, cooperation with authorities and group structure. Conducted self help group meetings in 10 target villages, Srae Andong, Don Trek, Beng Run, Kantout, Oh Totem, Anlong Pourk, Ta Sanh Cheng, Ta sanh Tbong, Oh Sngout and Prey Rum chek. The topics discussed in the meetings included, saving activity, cow bank, crop planting, negative impact of chemical fertilizer, selection of seeds. Project staff conducted child rights and anti-child trafficking orientation to self-help group members in 11 villages in order that the beneficiaries gain basic knowledge of the human rights and principal of democracy. Conducted training to self help group members, the topics included, group planning, management, group leader’s role and responsibilities, decision making role. The basic knowledge on democratic civil society was also included in the training. Conducted workshop on anti-child trafficking to local authorities ranged from village, commune and district leaders, police, military and civil police.       Click to enlarge 3. Community Assistance: Conducted meeting with authorities to identify the poorest of the poor and who need urgent assistance. Based on the reports received from local authorities, there were hundreds of individual faced food shortfall and need urgent attention. There were 32 families in the 7 villages, Oh Totem, Anlong Pouk, Ta Sanh Tbong, Ta Sanh Cheng, Anlong Pourk and Ta Sanh Cheng identified. Due to resources limited, the project could only response to the minimum of number of families and each of them received 35 kilograms of rice. Provided seeds of 120 kilograms to 156 families of self help groups for planting in the first crop planting season. Support 66 self help group members with light agriculture tools such hoes, knives and axes in 6 villages, Ta Sanh Tbong, Anlong Pouk, Beng Run, Kantout, Ta Sanh Cheng and Oh Sngout villages. The remaining members of the self help groups in other villages will receive later due to the budget planned is broken into quarterly basis.       Click to enlarge II. THE PROCESSES THAT ARE BEING USED TO ACHIEVE THE PROJECT OBJECTIVE CVD will, at all time, reflecting its service base on its common philosophy "Our core value is to work with people - but not for them. We stand on the essence of working together, learning from each other and setting our dreams into action. In all terms and efforts CVD values people in physical, social and spiritual ability. We care and work in harmony with individual groups and the local community's culture and tradition. We work together for our success". The main objective is "to avoid the hand-out mentality, but to participate in the process". The principle guide of CVD's community-based development work with this vulnerable population is to identify causes and appropriate responds so that they can facilitate to meet their own needs. With length of experience working along side poor underprivileged communities, CVD found "self-help concept" to be the best solution for the sustainable assistance. This approach is initially focused on the provision, facilitation and better utilization of resources in the village, through the implementation of a wide range of micro-projects. This project responds, solely to the needs prioritized by the villagers and, for the most part, address family economic, food security and other physical assistance. However, CVD conscious of the need for social and personal development included rights awareness and sense of community restoration in targeted villages. The self-help group approach will lead to genuine people-centered development where people are, not only at the center of development efforts, but also take responsibility for their own development and success. III. MAJOR PROBLEMS THAT RESTRICTED THE PROGRESS OF THE PROJECT DURING THIS QUARTER Most of the crops were destroyed by the heavy prolonged rain fall during the harvesting season, this lead to food shortfall for hundred of families in project target villages, where the project only has limited budget for emergency relief to assist those most vulnerable people. There are three field staffs assigned to carry out the project activities. But the project only has two motorbikes. To solve this issue, CVD has allocated one extra motorbike (CVD motorbike) to facilitate field activities. In general the village is located in far distance from each other and an adequate amount of staff time is not met, therefore one additional staff is needed to help facilitated the community in targeted village. IV. PLAN OF ACTION FOR THE NEXT QUARTER Continue follow up self help group activities such as cow bank, revolving loan Monitor the ongoing activities of project supported schools and children clubs Organize International Children day in June 2006. Organize tour visit for older children and conduct artwork contest Support agriculture tools, crops/seeds to self help group members Support food relief to the most vulnerable people in target villages Support school uniforms and supplies to all project supported schools. Organize training session and workshop to SHGs members and local authorities. Repair old schools V. CASE STUDIES: Case Study # 1: Sense of Community Building In 2004, CVD chose Chamkar Steng to be one of its targeted villages for its development work for that fiscal year. Chamkar Steng is one of the poorest villages among many others in the same vicinity. One of the main strategies of assisting the villagers was to set up a self-help group. The project assisted the villagers to form one self help group where the poor families are targeted and becoming the member of the group. The self help group started its very first action in saving fund for their group. Following the enthusiasm of the members, the project then, started to install some small amount of revolving fund for the purpose that the group members could access for extending their agricultural productivities. Later on the project made available of crop, seed, cow bank, light agriculture tools and emergency relief assistance to the group as a whole. Self-help group # 10, of 10 families, was set up in this village on 27 January 2004. The group is managed by Mrs. Mel Kim, 49 years old as the group leader. "Our living is now very much better then before and we won't need to borrow money from others because we have our saving in the group. The group members can have access to the cash loan without interest from the group whenever they need. It is a small amount loan, just in case for the member who needs money to buy medicine or food for the family" told Mrs. Mel Kim, the group leader. "I have to say that CVD had contributed great help to our group. Besides supporting us with the physical needs, CVD has also provided us with social support and equips us with basic knowledge of human rights/child rights, anti-child trafficking, cow raising and compose fertilizer making" continued Mrs. Kim. "We don't want just to HELP ourselves, but also to HELP the others" ended Mrs. Kim Chamkar Stung is an isolated part of Oh Totem village, Ta Sanh commune Samlot district Battambang province, located around 8 kilometres from the main part of the village. There was no proper road access to this area, except the tracks of the oxen carts. The members of the group have now increased to 12 families and many others want to join the group. The project staffs leave this matter to the group members and their leaders to make the decision if they want to increase the members in their groups. Conclusion: We have learned that at the beginning when forming up self help group, people seemed to ignore or less interest in becoming group members. Later on, when they saw the progress of the group, they want to join the group works. It reveals that many people want to involve in self help group because group members like the model people in the village, they work together, help and care each other; share whatever they have in the group. In the answer to the question of whether they will continue the group work after CVD phases out. They all said that their family living condition have improved after forming self help group and they have seen the necessity and the importance of the group, so they will continue their work normally. They had shown us that they are ready to include more members into the group. This is open the door for other villagers to access and receive opportunity to learn what they have done and has access group’s existing resources. SHG is like a large family in the village, when we have large group in the village, there will be no conflict in the village and if we have many groups in the commune, we can minimize the community dispute. On another part of the perception toward self-help group, we could see that to become a member of the group is not just benefiting of new skill learnt, able to help other where needed, gaining a unity atmosphere amongst members and working collaboratively within their village, but it is a great advantage that the member will be another body who is volunteering to put in his/her times, efforts and moral to reestablishing or restoring their social structure at their village level. This is our project's overall goal and expected outcome as it certainly enabling the sense of community building and democratically attainable for our society. Case Study # 2: Temporary School Building Gives Permanent Hope for the Hopeless Child Like many other orphans in Cambodia, Tuy Soky, a nine-year old boy, is living in a very poor living condition with his complete blind grandmother, 70 years old, in Prey Rum Chek village, Ta Sanh commune, Samlot district, Battambang province. Soky was born in 1996, in a poor farmer family. His father, Mr. Sim Tuy left the family in 1998, at the time Soky was just 2 years old. Due to poverty and economic pressure, Mr. Sim Tuy leave Siem Reap for Thailand in seek for job employment opportunity. Like many Cambodian illegal migrant, in Thailand, there was no news from Mr. Tuy neither any money sent home for the family. Many year after then, there was no hope that the head of the family would come back home, Mrs. Ork Sovann (Soky’s mother) and the grandmother left home their village in Siam Reap province in year 2000 to settle in Prey Rum Chek village, Ta Sanh commune, Samlot district Battambang province. Later on, Soky’s mother got a second marriage in 2001 and had another child, Chhin Srey Mom, 5 year- old girl. This family was so poor and they are one of the very poor amongst the poorest families in this village. They had no farm land; their living was depending on selling labor to other villagers to make money to support family. In 2004, Soky’s mother and his step father moved out from this village, left him and a grandmother to live in a very poor life. Soky and his grandmother make living by help doing works for other villagers in exchange for food and little money to support their daily needs. Prey Rum Chek village located around 7 kilometers from the main road where the government primary school existed. Because he lives far away from school, Soky had never thought that he has a chance to attend school. Soky and many other children in this village could not attend school. Only a few have access to the government school where they spend two-hour walk from their home and the learning duration, just three hours per day only. In late 2004, CVD supported a one-class school building in this village. "I am very happy to see a school exists in my village. I can attend the class, though I am now over the school age" recalled Soky. 42 children enrolled for the class in Prey Rum Chek. Soky was amongst those attended the grade 1 class. "I felt a bit ashamed because I was then 9 years old and oldest in the class, but I had many good friends to play with and I also had a good teacher, so my bad feeling was released" continued Soky. "I want to be a teacher in the future as I am now at grade 2 and I hope that I will make good income to support my grandmother" ended Soky. "I hope I can be a good teacher for my village children in the future" said Soky with shy impression character. My grandmother is the member of a self-help group. All members in the group are helping a lot to my family "I and grandmother said Soky". The villagers help to coordinate with village head and allocate one plot of land for my family and now we can plant crop and housing there. "The people in the group help us to plant/collect crop", Soky said. Soky also mentioned that he has good time at school and chance to attend the class. He gets new clothes, school kits and a lot of friends at school. Before "Angkar CVD" CVD organisation started, Soky do not have much time to play with other children in the village. Instead he has to sell his labour (collect corn, bean, cleaning grass in the farm etc.) to local villagers in order to exchange for food and some money. Conclusion: Most children want to spend their childhood at school if they have chance. In this case study, if CVD and no donor supported its work, a school construction cannot be existed in this village and many children will become uneducated/illiterate. As what Soky told that in the future, he wants to be a teacher, even though he attended school a bit late but he may achieve his goal and his dream may come true. The project supported schools are very temporary school buildings, but it gives a very permanent hope for Soky to become a good teacher for his community. 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Help and Hope to the Vulnerable Cambodian Vision in Development Battambang, Cambodia