More than two dozen Rotary clubs, led by the Rotary Club of Ponte Vedra, Florida, and the Rotary Club of Pursat and Sustainable Cambodia, are now applying for the next Rotary Global Grant, which will bring water, sanitation, hygiene, and community development to three impoverished communities in Pursat Province.
The primary aim of the project is to help vulnerable families attain self-sufficiency in their economic development and improve their health by providing access to clean water, sanitation, food security, and the Self-Help Group empowerment program. The project will benefit over 570 families, comprising more than 3000 individuals, residing in Bakan, Buo Srangae, and Kdei Chhnuol villages in Trapeang Chorng.
After conducting community need assessments, we discovered that in the three villages, over 70% of the total population lives below the poverty line, earning less than $81 per month per person. Furthermore, between 34% and 56% of the population lack access to clean sources of water and proper sanitation facilities, resulting in frequent illnesses from drinking unclean water and unsafe food products contaminated with chemical pesticides. Lack of access to safe food and water, sanitation, and unsustainable incomes are the primary challenges that prevent the villagers from escaping poverty.
To address these challenges, this global grant will enable the villagers to work together as a single community by forming an effective local Village Development Committee (VDC), WASH Committee, and Self-help Groups (SHG) to implement the projects in their villages. The WASH Committee will collaborate with vendors and beneficiaries to set up water wells, ponds, rooftop rainwater harvesting tanks, water filters, and latrines. The VDC will collaborate with SC staff to train beneficiaries and help them establish organic permaculture gardens, raise cows or buffalos, and continue to provide offspring to other villagers.
This project began on August 1, 2023, and will conclude in mid-2025.