Cambodia
The long period of war, isolation and chaos has made life difficult for the most vulnerable members of Cambodian society, the children. In Cambodia children are the tragic innocent victims of the country's recent dramatic history and the uneven development of a new economy, political system and capacities to respond to basic human needs.
During the actual period of rapid change in Cambodia, particularly in Phnom Penh and its surrounding areas, lone children as well as entire families are finding themselves in an emerging situation of struggle. Many families were destroyed as a result of the mass killings and separations during the Khmer Rouge regime, which only completely ended about 10 years ago.
The population of homeless or extremely poor children continues to increase. The repatriation of Cambodian refugees has brought new residents to Phnom Penh. The difficult living conditions in the countryside are due to poverty, poor crop yield, continuous warfare and/or banditry in some regions. In addition, landmines prevent farmers from growing rice in many parts of the country and also affect migrations to Phnom Penh.
A survey carried out by the NGO Mith Samlanh/Friends (2001) on the profile of street children listed the following reasons for leaving their homes:
- Poverty
- Problems within or breakdown of the family
- Becoming orphaned
All these factors have lead to an increase in urban migration and, therefore, an increase in the population of poor children. Poverty forces many children to work in order to supplement the family's income. The cost of a public education (registration fees, uniforms, supplies, mandatory private lessons) prevents many families from sending their children to school.
Background
Cambodia's emergence as a constitutional monarchy in 1993 was the result of four years of sweeping changes on top of more than twenty years of turmoil. Its earlier history had been less dramatic; nevertheless, Cambodian history has been marked by periods of authoritarian rule and conflict, from the disintegration of the Kingdom of Funan in the 6th century through the Khmer Empire in the 12th and 13th centuries and on to colonial rule in the 19th century.
National insecurity has been a continuous presence throughout Cambodia's history. The period of greatest insecurity began in the late 1960s, continued throughout the 1970s and beyond to the low intensity guerrilla warfare of the 1980s and early 1990s.
Facts and Figures on Cambodia (The World Factbook 2008)
| Total Population | 14.5 million |
| Percentage under age 15 years |
33% |
| Urban population | 22% |
| Human development index | 0.517 |
| GDP per capita | 286 USD |
| Population engaged in agriculture |
81.6% of rural population 77.5% of total population |
| Net primary school enrollment |
Total: 85.5% Girls: 81.7% |
| Net secondary school enrollment |
Total: 4.4% Girls: 11.6% |
| Percentage of adult population illiterate | 34.1% |
| Increasing rate of HIV/AIDS | Approx. 170,000 |
|
8,000 (3.5% of population) |
|
200 |
| Affected by HIV/AIDS Children under 18 yrs infection: |
over 5% |
Children under age 15 orphaned |
approx. 30,000 |
Children will have died from AIDS: |
7,500 |
| Under 5 yrs mortality rate | 163 per 1,000 live births |
| Land mines accidents Total | 1,005 |