Two Japanese NGOs have received more than $1 million in grants from the Japanese government – through the framework of the Grant Assistance for Japanese NGO Projects – to promote community health and sanitation, and support the youth.
A signing ceremony for the grants was held on March 9 in the presence of Japanese ambassador Masahiro Mikami and representatives of the two recipient organisations – Kokkyonaki Kodomotachi (KnK) and World Vision Japan (WVJ).
KnK has been empowering the youth of Pailin through the reinforcement of Community Learning Centres (CLC), and received $446,000 to carry the programme into its third year. KnK will continue to support the youth, especially those who suffer from unstable employment or a lack of life skills.
Mikami said the school dropout rate of youths in Pailin was high – which meant they missed out on acquiring the education and skills needed to guarantee a successful future. KnK would build two additional CLCs and provide study materials for them, while also updating materials in its existing centres.
“The organisation also supports the management of the CLCs, primarily by reviewing the content of vocational training programmes. Some renovations will also be made to the older centres. I hope that through this project, the youth of the province will obtain gainful employment and look foward to better lives in the future,” he added.
Another $648,000 was provided to WVJ to enable the NGO to fund the third year of its integrated health, nutrition, water and sanitation project in Preah Vihear province.
The organisation has been working in Cambodia since 2010 – with activities that have spanned health, education, water treatment and regional development.
Mikami said WVJ would continue to raise awareness of maternal and children’s health and nutrition among health centre staff in local communities. Through these activities, he hoped that the health and nutritional situations of children in those areas would improve and that the people living there would have access to clean water.
The Grant Assistance for Japanese NGO Projects began in Cambodia in 2002. It was established to support activities by Japanese NGOs that were helping with Cambodia’s reconstruction and development at the grassroots level. Since 2002, the Japanese government has provided over $48 million for 145 projects, mainly in the fields of primary education, health, agriculture and mine clearance.
