About Cambodia

About Cambodia

Cambodia’s history is one of civil war, genocide and political disruption. Currently, after years of conflict Cambodia is now a developing country and GDP is slowly increasing. However, the gap between the rich and the poor is also increasing, and much international assistance to Cambodia does not always reach intended targets.
In Cambodia, most of the populations (85%) are involved in rural agriculture.

Weak infrastructure and poor investment in agriculture and rural development has mean that many of these people are still struggling to reach an income of US$1 per day.
As a result, many migrate to the cities to find work. However, there are also many difficulties faced in the cities because education levels and skills are too low. Migration to the cities for work can cause families to be split up and this creates further social difficulties.

Employment is very competitive and obtaining employment in either the new, small private sector or the public sector is very difficult and poorly paid. Healthcare is meant to be free, however, in reality, it is extremely expensive and many families find themselves unable to afford basic medical treatment which further compounds their social disadvantage.

Cambodian society still reels from the trauma of war and there is a high level of inter-generational post-traumatic stress, mental illness, alcoholism and domestic violence in society. These are just some of the myriad of wide spread social problems that impacts peoples’ lives. The rural and remote areas in Cambodia have a high incidence of poverty, poor health and child malnutrition.