Cambodian Children’s Trust Australia is a non-profit, secular and non-government Cambodian organization that works to eliminate poverty among children in Battambang and educate them to become future leaders in the society. It aims to create a long lasting change in the lives of the disadvantaged and vulnerable children and families living under the poverty line in Cambodia.
History
Cambodian Children’s Trust was established in 2007 by Tara Winkler and Jedtha Pon with the support of the Cambodian Ministry of Social Affairs, Veteran and Youth Rehabilitation after they rescued 14 children from an abusive orphanage in Battambang. After that the organization grew and became a full fledged institution for the children and families with disadvantaged backgrounds and vulnerable circumstances. It supports more than 300 children in its programs related to community development, education and social enterprise.
Vision
The organization wishes to ensure that Cambodia becomes free of poverty and empower its generation with access to quality education and healthcare. The vision of the Cambodian Children’s Trust is to ensure a holistic and comprehensive approach to support the disadvantaged children and families. The purpose is to devise ways to become more sustainable and influential through the social enterprise programs. The organization wishes to stay non-political and non-religious that serves and supports all individuals regardless of their race, religion, culture, gender, political affiliation and sexual orientation.
Projects Offered
Community Outreach
The Community Outreach programs are focused on the family. It addresses all aspects of a child’s life including physical health, emotional stability, safety, education, mentoring and future opportunities. It gives focused attention to each individual to help them grow into happy, healthy adults. It encourages them to explore their full potential and abilities and become valuable members and leaders in the society.
Education
Cambodia has a serious lack of a National Cambodian curriculum and qualified teachers. Due to widespread poverty, more than 40% of the Cambodian children do not have access to schools and education. The Cambodian Children’s Trust thus ensures that poor and disadvantaged children are enrolled in the education programs designed by the organization. This gives them the opportunity to acquire quality and well-rounded education that instills in them life skills, ethics and awareness. The children are encouraged to recognize their potential and achieve their goals. The purpose is to empower the young generation so that they grow up to be responsible adults and lead the society and nation. It encourages critical thinking in children that teaches them how to think and act in a situation and improve their circumstances. It offers children tutoring, mentoring and scholarships.
Social Enterprise
The organization aims to create employments for the socially disadvantaged people at reasonable wages so that they may stay out of the poverty line. The purpose is to create a lasting change in the developing communities by providing the people skills and employment. This would in turn contribute to enhance the economic condition of Battambang and help to create a self-sufficient future for the disadvantaged and vulnerable population of Cambodia.
