Social development

Cambodia’s first mental rehabilitation centre was formally opened in Kandal province’s Kandal Stung district on Wednesday, with the government planning to build a specialist facility to house jailed minors. Speaking during the opening ceremony, Minister of Interior Sar Kheng said the Kingdom’s socio-economic progress meant ...

Cambodina Human Rights Committee (CHRC) spokesman Chin Malin on Wednesday rejected a report by a group of NGOs to the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) that the Kingdom is facing an “ongoing human rights crisis”. Malin said he also expected that the possible adoption of ...

The government yesterday ordered two NGOs to retract a critical report on the negative impacts of microloans after summoning their representatives for a meeting to defend their research. The report, published last month by Licadho and Sahmakum Teang Tnaut, featured seven case studies of abuse chosen ...

NGO Good Neighbours Cambodia (GNC) has released a report which said that 3.4 per cent of youths had tried drugs and another 4.9 per cent were enticed or forced into using narcotics by friends and neighbours. GNC said a survey of 283 youths from 13 ...

Civil society organisations along with local authorities in Kampot province have kick-started a campaign to plant 100,000 mangrove trees in eight communities in the province throughout September to December. The campaign was jointly organised between ActionAid, Children and Women Development Centre in Cambodia, Samaky Organisation, Kampot ...

Some 70 NGO representatives, forest activists and university students signed an open letter urging the government to find ways to prevent and combat forestry crimes more effectively. In their petition released on Saturday, the group said they had been observing the government’s clampdowns over the ...

Cambodia yesterday urged Asean member countries to jointly combat the spread of substandard and counterfeit medicines which are endangering people’s health and welfare and affecting economic growth in the region. Defence Minister General Tea Banh, representing Prime Minister Hun Sen, made the call during the 14th ...

Some 500 representatives from civil society organisations (CSO) on Thursday urged the Ministry of Interior to uphold the principle of democracy and allow them to carry out activities without any restrictions from local authorities. ...

Six non-governmental organisations on Tuesday praised the government’s decision to increase electricity generated by solar panels up to 20 percent of national output by 2023. The organisations included the NGO Forum on Cambodia, 3s Rivers Protection Network, My Village, Culture and Environment Preservation Association, Fisheries ...

More than 100 enthusiastic students, teachers and community members welcomed the launch of “School Learning Gardens” at Trapeang Svay Primary School in Siem Reap province’s Angkor Thom district on Wednesday. ...

Prime Minister Hun Sen has tasked all relevant ministries, institutions, authorities, educational institutions, learning centres and monasteries to develop lifelong learning opportunities for the people to better their lives. In a message published yesterday to mark this year’s National Literacy Day, Mr Hun Sen said ...

As the Ministry of Interior prepares to meet NGOs for the third time next Thursday, Kratie provincial governor Va Thorn has urged an estimated 152 civil society organisations, associations and communities in the province to follow the law, maintain political neutrality and refrain from getting ...

The Ministry of Information on Tuesday concluded the final revision by key ministries of the draft Law on Access to Information, without making any major amendments. It will be submitted to the Council of Ministers to be rubber-stamped by the end of September or beginning ...

The Ministry of Information and the National Committee for Counter Trafficking (NCCT) joined hands to strengthen the capacity of journalists, TV presenters and commentators to upgrade their skills in helping to address human trafficking. ...

The Health Ministry yesterday said that the number of people contracting dengue fever continues to decrease across the Kingdom in the wake of a spike. The ministry noted that about 2,400 new cases were found across the Kingdom this month since a spike in July. ...

Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesman Ket Sophann yesterday said the government has submitted a report to the European Commission detailing efforts made to improve human rights in the Kingdom. The report, submitted on Tuesday, is in response to a 30-page note sent by the EC in March ...

The National Aids Authority (NAA) said more than 800 people tested positive for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) last year, joining over 76,000 others aged between 15 and 49 in the Kingdom already infected with the virus. The spread of HIV/AIDS in the Kingdom is showing ...

The Ministry of Social Affairs, Veterans and Youth Rehabilitation has told The Rabbit School, a local NGO that educates autistic students, to move its operations from government-run National Borei for Infants and Children (NBIC) to a new premise, school director Hun Touch said. The ministry’s ...

A report from local human rights NGOs Licadho and Sahmakum Teang Tnaut (STT) claimed that the increasing levels of debt caused by taking loans from microfinance institutions (MFIs) is forcing rural families to sell off land. The study also claimed that the sharp rise in debt ...

CHRC President Keo Remy said after the meeting that he and the Japanese team – led by Masato Otaka, Ambassador in charge of UN Affairs and Deputy Assistant Minister of the Foreign Policy Bureau at Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs – discussed human rights issues ...

The Ministry of Environment has proposed a model project to be implemented in urban schools to mitigate the impact of climate change. The pilot scheme will involve five target schools in the capital, including Preah Sisowath High School, Chaktomuk Primary School, Samdech Hun Sen Prey ...

Prime Minister Hun Sen on Friday approved the draft law to expand the National Social Security Fund to provide a financial security net for civil servants, and those in the private and informal sectors. ...

In an interview with the Nikkei Asian Review on July 31, Mogherini – who is also the Vice-President of the European Commission – was asked whether the EU’s possible sanctions would lead to reforms in Cambodia, to which she said the Kingdom “needed to respect ...

Wat Bo Primary School in Siem Reap town is considered a model school throughout the Kingdom and beyond, having made a name for itself for its well-mannered pupils, pleasant environment and attentive teachers. Located in Sala Kamroeuk commune’s Wat Bo village, this academic year the ...