What we do
COCD works with vulnerable children and their families in rural Cambodia who are living in poor conditions and/or at risk of experiencing abuse and exploitation.
COCD aims to improve the lives of vulnerable children by addressing a number of challenges including: poor education, family incomes, migration and human trafficking, access to clean water and sanitation and participation in decision making in the family, school and community setting.
COCD addresses these issues by planning and implementing integrated rural development programs in partnership with the villagers, local authorities, NGO’s and the government sector.
For more information about COCD, please refer to the
Core Program Areas
Child Protection and Development
A significant proportion of children are continuing to experience violence, abuse and exploitation due to poverty and/or their rights not being upheld.
Our goal is to ensure that children are educated, protected and cared for, with a focus on early childhood development and preschool age.
- Work with children to increase their knowledge and skills for development.
- Work with families & duty bearers to improve their capacity to protect and care for children.
- Work with local authorities and the Government to strengthen child protection mechanisms and services.
- Education scholarship programs.
- Raise awareness of education opportunities.
- Facilitate career development sessions with school children and families.
- Invest in infrastructure & schooling resources such as school supplies, furniture and uniforms.
- Improve access & transport to schools.
- Build capability of early childhood and primary school teachers to perform health check-ups and screen for malnutrition.
- Strengthen child protection mechanisms by working with the government and other stakeholders.
Minea is 14 years old and attends grade 7 in Trapang Bei, which is 3 kilometers from her home. Her family lives in extreme poverty, supported by her widowed mother who is a rice farmer.
COCD with cooperation from the village chief, sponsored Minea’s education and education materials to reduce the burden on her mother. Minea also received a bicycle so she can get to and from school easier.
‘I am committed to studying hard and will never give up my passion.’– Phat Minea
Economic Empowerment
Poverty and poor living conditions affect a large proportion of the population living in COCD target areas. Key contributors include lack of access to capital and agricultural resources, fertile land, climate change, lack of employment opportunities, and wealth generation being concentrated in urban areas.
COCD programs aim to address the key contributors of poverty and poor living conditions which result in devastating consequences for children including poor health and education, malnourishment and higher vulnerability to exploitation, and greater levels of migration.
Our goal is to reduce the vulnerability of children through improved and sustainable socio-economic livelihoods for families and their communities by addressing the key contributors of poverty and poor living conditions.
Economic empowerment & employment
Increase vocational skills and create job opportunities for young people.
Farming and agriculture
Increase skills in farming and agriculture
Water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) & health
Improve access to water and sanitation-related services and resources to enable villagers to work productively.
Safe migration & human trafficking
Improve and strengthen child protection mechanisms and services.
Natural disaster risk reduction
Support communities to become more resilient and prepared.
Education/ skill development with villagers and duty bearers on finance & employment, farming and agriculture, safe migration & human trafficking and WASH & nutrition.
Convene self-help groups to provide a forum for community members to raise concerns and problem solve together.
Provision of resources or families or restore infrastructure – financial loans/capital, livestock & farming equipment, WASH facilities (e.g. toilets, water wells or restore community ponds), nutrition packages.
Collaborate with local authorities / key actors to respond to key issues including human trafficking and safe migration.
Neou Socheat’s story – A Widow’s Life Improved
In grade 5, Mrs. Socheat was forced to quit school and move to the city to earn an income to support her family in the village. Mrs. Socheat now has a family of her own and is unable to generate enough income to feed them adequately and provide them with schooling opportunities.
Mrs. Socheat’s family was selected by the village and commune authorities to join a COCD project. She was provided with a seeding cow, training on technical skills in raising chickens, and an interest-free loan to help her generate daily income to provide for her family.
Mrs. Socheat used her interest-free loan to purchase seeding hens. She now runs a successful chicken-raising business and can proudly generate enough income to develop her family.
SOCIAL EMPOWERMENT
Participation and decision-making rights for women and children in Cambodia are very low. Traditionally participation rights conflict with traditional values and social norms. As a result, children are not taught to express their views within the family, school, and community environment. Poor families are further excluded from community activities and planning due to poor literacy and numeracy skills.
Our goal is to increase the number of children and their families who contribute to planning and decision-making in their own lives and the lives of others.
What we do
- Capability building and skill development for women and children with a focus on leadership, confidence building and poverty analysis.
- Run family goal setting training, including family economic development planning.
- Facilitate community empowerment forums with commune councils, and invite government representatives.
- Trial planning and decision-making processes in collaboration with local authorities to include the participation of children and families.
Where we work
COCD currently operates it programs in villages in 4 districts across three provinces.