Logo of Phnom Penh Post newspaper Phnom Penh Post - Students grow school gardens against hunger

Students grow school gardens against hunger

Students grow school gardens against hunger

Thirty schools in Siem Reap, Battambang and Kampong Thom will participate in a two-year pilot project to host vegetable gardens to improve nutrition and teach students life skills, starting in December, the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation said on Friday.

According to the FAO, “nutrition security remains a key issue affecting a majority of the population in rural and urban areas” due to poverty and lack of knowledge about nutrition.

“A report of the Ministry of Planning in 2014 showed that 32 per cent of the children under 5 years of age in Cambodia have stunted growth,” said Chea Samnang, director of the rural health care department of the Council for the Development of Cambodia.

“This shows . . . a serious lack of nutrition.” The project will establish a pool of master trainers and teachers who will be able to pass on their skills and knowledge to other teachers and schoolchildren.

MOST VIEWED

  • Joy as Koh Ker Temple registered by UNESCO

    Cambodia's Koh Ker Temple archaeological site has been officially added to UNESCO’s World Heritage List, during the 45th session of the World Heritage Committee held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on September 17. The ancient temple, also known as Lingapura or Chok Gargyar, is located in

  • Famed US collector family return artefacts to Cambodia

    In the latest repatriation of ancient artefacts from the US, a total of 33 pieces of Khmer cultural heritage will soon return home, according to the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts. In a September 12 press statement, it said the US Attorney’s Office for the

  • Tina rebuffs ‘false claims’ over falling paddy price

    Agriculture minister Dith Tina has shed light on the trade of paddy rice in Battambang – Cambodia’s leading rice-producing province – in a bid to curb what he dubs a “social media fact distortion campaign” to destabilise the market. While acknowledging that the prices of paddy

  • Cambodia set to celebrate Koh Ker UNESCO listing

    To celebrate the inscription of the Koh Ker archaeological site on UNESCO’s World Heritage List, the Ministry of Cults and Religion has appealed to pagodas and places of worship to celebrate the achievement by ringing bells, shaking rattles and banging gongs on September 20. Venerable

  • Kampot curfew imposed to curb ‘gang’ violence

    Kampot provincial police have announced measures to contain a recent spike in antisocial behaviour by “unruly’ youth. Officials say the province has been plagued by recent violence among so-called “gang members”, who often fight with weapons such as knives and machetes. Several social observers have

  • PM outlines plans to discuss trade, policy during US visit

    Prime Minister Hun Manet is set to meet with senior US officials and business leaders during his upcoming visit to the US for the UN General Assembly (UNGA), scheduled for September 20. While addressing nearly 20,000 workers in Kampong Speu province, Manet said he aims to affirm