The project was the launch of Habitat for Humanity in Cambodia. It started with the Khmer Kampuchea Krom community, which was a group of squatters that had migrated from Vietnam to Cambodia and had been evicted from the city centre. Habitat had found groups of people who had saved to build their new life in a resetllement site near the airport. The project was initially set up to establish 22 Save and Build Groups and to train them in basic micro credit skills and impart home improvement skills to 264 home partners and in assist the construction of 264 houses for the target families. With a project modification in December 2004, the project was expanded to include 324 families and 324 houses and was expanded to include also the Samaki, Krang Ang Krong, Sen Sok and Trapaing Anchagn communities. In the follow-on project. Habitat for Humanity continued to work in the resettlement sites outside the centre of Phnom Penh to develop 6 community based associations with at least 1800 adults and 800 youth trained in building activities. The project built or repaired 400 houses and built 100 in-home toilets. The project also trained community health workers in an effort to improve the health for at least 1500 children. Lastly the project engaged 150 families in new or expanded income generating activities.
In Phnom Penh, housing is still inadequate in both quantitative and qualitative terms. It is estimated that at least 20% of the population (approximately 250,000 people or 50,000 families) live in squatter settlements, where more than half of them live in houses made of bamboo and leaves. Fifty percent (50%) of these squatter dwellers are children who face numerous problems, including inadequate shelter, lack of clean water supply, sanitation and waste-management facilities. In this third phase of the work with Habitat for Humanity, seven communities were targeted for assistance through improved living conditions; strengthened local governance and improved health – five communities where HFHC has an established presence (Sen Sok, Samaki, Trapaign Anchagn, Andong, Khmer Kampuchear Krom) and two communities introduced to the program in FY10 (Anlong Korng Thmey and Tuol Rokarkoh).
The repaid mortgages from the projects over the years were held by HFHC in a revolving fund until around 2015, at which point HFH abandoned the sve and build model. It is estimated that 100s of houses have been built or renovated while the revolving fund was operating or due to grants made from the revolving fund in the years since 2015.
Implementation 2010 – 2013
Visited 25 October 2011
