In Cambodia, it is very common that parents find themselves unable to raise their children due to the extreme poverty they have to face. They often have to find work in urban areas in order to make ends meet, causing their children to live with neighbors or relatives.
This is also the case with the three siblings Eling, Vatana, and Ememh. The 8-, 5-, and 4-year-olds have been living with their aunt Srey Oun, who is also one of our students, for the past year. Their parents moved to Phnom Penh and took up low-income jobs at a factory. They have to use most of their income to repay a bank loan that the couple took out a few years ago to cover medical bills for another relative. This means, however, that they are unable to care for or provide for their son and two daughters.
Srey Oun has made it her priority to do her best at raising her nephew and two nieces. She looks after them, cooks for them every day, and has even managed to enroll them in the bilingual Khmer-English school that she herself works at. She spends most of her salary to cover their rent and living expenses. However, given that she herself has grown up in poverty and has just recently become self-sufficient through her job, she is unable to cover their tuition or other education-related expenses on top of everything else.
Read more about the children’s experience in Eling’s words below!
Dear NGO,
My name is Eling and I am 8 years old. I come from Kampot province in Cambodia. Nowadays, I live with my aunt, my uncle, and my younger siblings, who are 5 and 4 years old.
Now I am a student at FLCC school in grade 3. My younger siblings also attend kindergarten at this school. I am really happy to study here, but my family cannot support me. Nowadays, my mother and my father are workers in a factory in Phnom Penh. They earn a little salary to rent their room and send some money to us, but my mother has a loan from the bank. She borrowed money when my grandmother got sick, and she had to pay for everything herself. Now, my parents cannot pay for our clothes, school supplies, or food.
I like to study at FLCC in Kampot very much because in the mornings, I study Khmer, and in the afternoons, I study English. I want to develop my knowledge and get a lot of education. One thing that I really want to tell you is that I was ranked the best student in my class of 21 students!
My family situation puts us in a difficult situation, so we really need help. We are so grateful for your support. I want to say thank you so much for supporting my siblings and me with our school and our lives. Thank you so much!
With love,
Eling
Thomlang – Cambodian Youth Support covers all three children’s annual tuition as well as school supplies and medical expenses whenever needed. This way, we ensure that Eling, Vatana, and Ememh get to grow up in a loving and stable environment and find joy in studying early on.
Support Cambodian children through education by donating to CYS today!
