Relying on fishing has become difficult, and sometimes Yon and her husband barely cover the cost of sending their boat out on the water. To mitigate expenses, two of Yon’s children are currently working as housekeepers in Siem Reap, her husband has started his own electronic repair business, and Yon and her daughter are working as boat tour guides.

Family members are exploring odd jobs to make ends meet, but without a developed skillset through educational investment, infrastructure development, and governance capacity building, sustainable economic diversification will be difficult and families in rural Cambodia will continue to straddle the poverty line.

Solving a Complex Problem

Addressing this nuanced problem will not be easy. However, there are several projects currently underway that are aimed at improving living standards through job-generation and capacity building initiatives. The Cambodia GEF Small Grants Programme is a multi-disciplinary project that aims to stimulate economic and human development through climate change and industry-based education, job-generation, local governance capacity building, and competitive savings and investment opportunities.

For example, the GEF project led the successful development of a now thriving eco-tourism sector in Kompong Phluk. Under the GEF project mandate, two eco-centres were constructed, and 700 women underwent training to become boat rowing tour guides through the region’s nearly 50 hectares of old-growth forests. During the rainy season, these densely populated forests are typically flooded, allowing guides to navigate tourists through beautiful areas rich in biodiversity.

Share this Story