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Socio-economic development in Cambodia has made significant progress since conflict in the country ended 20 years ago. However, the current situation of Cambodia's children remains one of the worst in the region. Children and young people aged 18 and under make up almost half of Cambodia's population.
Large proportions (80.5%) live in rural areas and more than 30% of live below the poverty line. The Paris Peace agreements of 1991 ended three decades of conflict and isolation that devastated Cambodian social infrastructure. Illness, disease, landmines and traffic accidents have also combined to give Cambodia one of the highest rates of disability in the developing world.
Although poverty has declined slightly over the past decade, one in three Cambodians lives on 50 cents a day, and children – who make up more than half of the country’s population – endure many obstacles to their development. About a third of all Cambodian children do not complete primary education; one in 12 do not live to the age of five; and thousands have been orphaned by AIDS.
Save the Children has worked in Cambodia since 1979, predominantly in the health education and child protection sectors. Focusing on children's rights and development, we directly worked with over 100,000 children in 2010, across six of Cambodia's 24 provinces.
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