Building Secondary Schools in Cambodia - a New Milestone!
Going to secondary school in Cambodia is a big deal. The most recent statistics provided by UNICEF indicate that only 45% of children of secondary school age continue their education beyond the primary level (UNICEF Data, 2017). As the amount of education that youth can access greatly affects a community’s ability to develop sustainably, this is an issue that HOPE is keen to address. Being able to address this, however, is also a positive indication of sustainable changes already taking place.
At HOPE, we understand that access to clean water, income, and the ability for children to access education go hand in hand. Without clean water and sufficient income, children are required to assist their families and do not have the time to go to school. This is why in every village in which HOPE installs clean water wells, schools are built/renovated as necessary - in the hope that through the completion of step 1, children will have the opportunities to access education. And after 25 years of working in the Western Province of Pursat, which was one of the poorest provinces in formerly one of the world’s poorest countries, we are now seeing real change. People are now able to meet their fundamental needs and children are going to school. To think that we can now address the problem of the lack of secondary education, beyond primary, is an incredible milestone.
Many many young people in the rural area of Cambodia cannot pursue secondary education, as the closest middle school is too far away for them to commute to. The same was true for the youth in the villages of Ankrong, Tadeis, Lavieng and Yey Moa East, where 180 students eagerly await the opening of the Ankrong Secondary School, the first ever secondary school in the area! After the initial enrollment, it is expected that approximately 150 new students will be added to the school every year!
Neal Walters was motivated to do something about this after visiting the area. As a long-time supporter of HOPE, he was keen to get involved more deeply and proactively raise funds for a project from his network. He chose this secondary school Project, as there was a need, and because it also reflects the positive impact of HOPE’s core values: Self-Reliance, Dignity, Compassion, Integrity & Long-term Relationships. People are becoming self-reliant and attaining their dignity; our long-lasting relationship with the province have now led us to the point where we are witnessing families being able to give their children opportunities to learn more than reading & writing.
So Neal has been on a mission to see that children of Angkrong and neighbouring villages can access a secondary education. The students of Nagoya International School and Yokohama International School have also shown incredible support towards this project by rising funds of 3.5 million yen and visiting the school to help with the construction themselves. 3 out of the 5 planned classrooms are now complete, and Neal is now endeavouring to raise the final 1.7 million and making a final push to complete the last 2 classrooms and playground. These children are soon going to receive more education than their parents ever did, and they may even one day have the potential to attend university one day.
Education for the youth is critical for a country’s sustainable development. How much education youth can access greatly affects whether or not a country is poor, what its industries are, and its ability to progress through the efforts of its own people. As these children progress through their education, perhaps engineers, politicians, software developers, artists that can earn a living, higher educators may emerge among them.
If you are interested in supporting the school, please visit Neal's Facebook Page and come to one of his fundraising events, or you can make a direct donation right here. [link to donation page]
