Community Early Childhood Intervention Project Supported by Khmer Association for Development

 

Community Early Childhood Intervention ProjectThe community early childhood intervention are providing the 4-5 year old children with kindergarten, basic health care and education on hygiene, sanitation, first aid and nutrition. The teaching program will include educational song singing, circle drawing, picture drawing and painting, old story listening for educating children, bodily hygiene, daily moral practices, smart games, physical exercise (muscle warming), script and numerous teaching.

 

When each school year comes, the children who will reach school age of 6 years old will be taken to public primary school for enrolment into grade 1 by KAD. KAD will help prepare birth date certificates and cvs for filling out the application forms for starting their school. KAD educates the children’s parents on the child rights, advantages and values of the field of education so that they will pay more attention to their children’s schooling and in order to reduce domestic violence towards children.

 

Community Early Childhood Intervention ProjectKAD educates the children and their mothers on health issues once a week including (1) basic health care for children – the children’ parents will be educated on how to prevent the breakouts of seasonal diseases such as dengue fever, cholera, cold, etc. and first aid, (2) sanitation and hygiene – the children and their parents will be educated on the use of clean water and how to clean body and clothes, vegetables before cooking or eating, hand-washing before eating and after leaving the toilet and especially they will be suggested to use a toilet every time and to keep the environment clean, (3) nutrition – the children and their parents will be educated on nutrition in order to improve child heath and the children will be given daily nutritional food as well and (4) first aid – the children and their mothers will be educated on emergency prior to seeking medical services. Health education sessions take place every two weeks. 50 participants are allowed to attend each session.

 

Community Early Childhood Intervention ProjectIn addition to education and health care, the project has planned to provide the medical and dental treatment to the kindergarten children and the vulnerable community children who can’t afford to pay for health services. They will be sent to health service providers and even given payment for health services by KAD. Every two weeks, KAD will send the dental team to see the children there.

 

The project object is to improve access to education and to health care for vulnerable children with 4-5 years in age living rural areas by opening a kindergarten for them and sending them to grade 1 of primary school in the following year when reaching the school age of 6 years and by providing them with basic dental and medical services and education, sanitation and hygiene, first aid and nutrition, educating community people on child rights and values of the field of education and promoting library book reading.

 

True stories of some of children in Vor Sar commune, Samraong Tong district

Mrs. Yin Chrip is a widow with two children living in Dok Por village, Vor Sar commune under bad living situation. Currently, she earns her living by selling a small bucket of vegetables at the market with daily low incomes used to feed her both children. She told KAD that in the past, she had some plots of farmland used for growing seasonal rice and later on, she sold them in order to clear up the depts. So for the time-being, she doesn’t have any farmland.

 

She has two children, a boy and a girl. The boy’s name is Oeun Pros Vy and he is 9 years old this year and the girl’s name is Oeun Srei Laen and she is 7 years old this year. They used to go to the state–run Tuol Svay kindergarten 5km away from their village and latter on, they were stopped from going to school due to the lack of transport means, school uniform, school materials and due to living issues of their family. At home, they are used to help do work for family including carrying water from water well, going to sell vegetables at the market, planting trees behind the houses, fishing and crabbing. Currently, these two children have been allowed to attend the kindergarten class of KAD.


Mr. Sao Yoeun is 47 years old as a soldier and Mrs. Men Sokun is 47 years old as a farmer living in Dok Por village. They are a couple with the total of 7 children. The last two of their children, Pang Rathy, 11 years old and Pang Pros Vi, 7 years old have never gone to school due to lack of attention of their parents. In addition, their father always does violence on them (beating up) when drunk and ordered them to work (fishing, crabbing and finding firewood). Their mother is drunk every day and never care about the well-being of the children and farther work away and comes back home occasionally. When staying home, he is always drunk as well. Sometimes, these two boys have nothing to eat because nobody cooks food for them. The children seem to be unhygienic, suffering from malnutrition and to have a mental problem. The village chief asked the parents to send their children to school and to stop doing violence against the children, but they seemed to ignore it. Latter on, KAD met with a couple at the chief village’ house and begged them to send their children to KAD class. Currently, these two boys go to kindergarten class of KAD.

 

This is the family of Mr. Horm Sokhom. He is a farmer with 6 children living in Dok Por village. Due to poverty, lack of transport means and school materials, all his children were stopped from going to school. The first 15 year-old daughter stopped going to school when she studied at grade 3. The second 14 year-old daughter was stopped when she studied at grade 2. The 4 other children were stopped from going to school when they just attended school the first year. Now, four of their children have been allowed to attend KAD kindergarten class.