Help children in Cambodia – the Strengthening Cambodian Communities Project
During my short visit to Siem Reap, we took Angkor Wat tuk tuk tours with my friend Monika and I found out that the tuk tuk owner Mr. Sopheap Chan is one of the three people behind the TSCCP. So I invited Sopheap to Mandalay Inn where I was staying to have a little chat about the project.
TSCCP – The Strengthtening Cambodian Communities Project was developed in early 2010 with the help of Tara Louise Quinn (the founder and Project Coordinator from Australia), Karen Tep (the co-founder and Manager of Cambodian Awareness Program from USA) and Sopheap Chan (local project manager from Cambodia). Tara once came to Siem Reap are as a volunteer and Sopheap was born in Aranh, one of the villages in Siem Reap, and together they came up with the idea of this project.
We all know that Cambodia is a poor country where can be difficult for families to provide proper education to their children. Very often you can find little bare-foot children and even their mothers at the streets begging the toiurists for some change. That was one of the main reasons why TSCCP is a project created to help Cambodian children, women and families. To help children escape poverty through educational and vocational programs. We also assist in community development, social work, health care funding and hygeine and sanitation programs.
TSCCP is a partner of a Cambodian organization Khmer for Khmer Organization and an Australian organization Wat About Cambodia. It is personally Sopheap taking care of everything in Cambodia and Tara is the one getting sponsors mostly in Australia.
The project especially tries to protect Cambodian children, avoid their exploitation (such as sex slavery) and get them better education. The children are provided with books and English classes. Then they are taught to improve their computer skills via existing NGO programs. The idea of the project is to prepare children for their adulthood when they will need English and know how to work with computers and internet to find a good job and be successful in life.
TSCCP gets each child a bicycle as well.
Many of the children are from the poorest families with no money for living, or some are even orphans so they could never get a good future if the project didn’t exist. Sometimes, Cambodian families are forced to leave their children as they don’t have money to feed them so TSCCP is fighting for the families and with the sponsorships trying to keep the families together with their children.
It is not only the children, but the whole poor families are provided with medicine, rice, clothes and even mosquito nets. Two clear water wells were installed for the project to supply the Aranh and surrounding villages with fresh water.
The project as well helps women to learn how to sew.
TSCCP is trying to get as many sponsors as possible to sponsor more and more children around Cambodia. The sponsorship is just $18 per month, or $25 including rice for the whole family. Each child requires a starter pack for $72 which includes a bicycle, new uniform, shoes, bag, pens, pencils and bicycle helmet.
TSCCP regularly has short term and long term positions available for volunteers at the English school and on community development projects. Our outreach program welcomes donations of books, clothing, medical supplies, baby formula and toys.
Please consider becoming one of the sponsors. To get more information about the project, please check out TSCCP website, follow The Strengthening Cambodian Communities Project facebook.
