Affected by civil war, political corruption and weak democracy, poor educational standards, Cambodia is one of the most exciting and poorest countries in Asia. Cambodian people are still haunted by their bitter past of Khmer Rouge regime that shattered their dream as well as the beauty of country. Various Community Based Organizations (CBOs) are established in Cambodia in the last decade making great progress in fighting poverty, creating sustainable development and rebuilding Cambodian society. These organizations are giving the Cambodian people new tools and hope for the future. CBOs have been instrumental to pave the way for improvements in health, education, human rights, social services, environment, women and children's rights, land reform, resettlement and rights of affected people, rights and care of older people, agriculture and others. The main objective of these CBOs is to support the majority of population who are living below the poverty line.
Developing a poverty-reduction plan is really a challenging task that CBOs are undertaking. Due to limited financial resources these organizations are facing various constraints to carry on their programs. They lack skills and resources to become powerful players at the local level. They often struggle to run their programs and to raise funds from international donors. They immediately require support, for example, in fundraising and proposal writing, organizational development, administration and community development. By taking part in our community development project not only are you able to learn in depth about Khmer culture and vivid stimulating way of Cambodian life, but you are also contributing to the economic growth of local communities.
Volunteer’s Activities
In our Community Development project, volunteers not only get to learn about Khmer culture, past and present, but are also able to help local communities in this truly fascinating country through various work activities in community development. As a volunteer working in Community Development project in Cambodia, you will involve in working with the community and assist them in various possible ways. You will use your ideas and skills by raising funds, writing reports and proposals, developing ideas on income-generation activities, facilitating networking and training, providing legal advocacy and others.
Asia Horizon manages individually developed placements and arranges volunteer’s activities in advance as per the volunteers’ skills and interests. As a community development volunteer, you will have the opportunity to support the effort of the Cambodian communities to fulfill their dream of better future. At the beginning of the project, the volunteers will get an outline of the organizations and its activities that will certainly help them getting necessary information to start working in communities. Volunteers require a minimum stay of 4 weeks to participate in these projects.
Project Skills Required
No specific qualification is needed for the volunteers working in the community development sectors. The basic requirement you need is genuine interest in and committed to the Cambodian country and culture. Volunteers should also be flexible, self-motivated with open mind to learn and serve to the people of new culture and religion and loaded with passion and enthusiasm.
Asia Horizon welcomes volunteers from any background since this project cooperates with various CBOs working in diverse sectors. So one thought, one head and one hand will be a building block to uplift the underprivileged societies of Cambodia. The volunteer working in community development program should at least be 20 years of age.
Arrangement of Food and Accommodation
Asia Horizon arranges a separate room along with a communal bath with cold water and fan for volunteers in both the host families and hostel accommodations. The volunteer will live with a host family during volunteering. The families are very friendly and hospitable and look forward to learn more about the volunteer's culture and country. They serve breakfast in small restaurants or at work, Cambodian food for lunch and dinner. In the case of the volunteer having special food requirements (e.g. as a vegetarian), we would recommend staying in a guest house, as meat is the basis of most Cambodian food.
Our country coordinator will welcome the volunteer at the airport and introduce him/her to the host family and the host organization. Volunteers will also have 24/7 access to our contact person and phone number of our coordinator. As part of the program our staffs also visit volunteers every two weeks.
Project Location
Our placements for volunteer working in the communities are based in Phnom Penh and different provinces of Cambodia. Phnom Penh is a pleasant, swiftly developing city situated at the convergence of three great rivers: the Mekong, Tonle Sap and Bassac. The Royal Palace, Wat Phnom, National Museum, majestic temples of Angkor Wat in Siem Reap province, Toul Sleng Genocide Museum, the beautiful coconut beaches of Sihanoukville are the main tourist attraction centers of Phnom Penh, which is an ideal initial point for daily or weekend trips to the provinces and the coastline. Phnom Penh has a broad array of restaurants, markets, internet cafés and other interesting places.
Volunteer in the provinces will usually stay in the province capitals which provide basic facilities such as traditional Cambodian restaurants and markets. In the provinces the local people take pleasure in showing the volunteer around and giving the volunteer an idea of country life in Cambodia. The volunteers will have the opportunity to discover the country and culture at long weekends. The volunteer should take some time to visit the main attractions of Cambodia, particularly the majestic temples of Angkor Wat in Siem Reap province and the beautiful coconut beaches of Sihanoukville.
 
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