About Us
Our History
Buddhist Library Cambodia Project (BLCP) started as a small project in 2005 by the late Paget Sayers, a caring Australian businessman. Sayers visited Kampot, a small riverside Cambodian town as a tourist earlier on and saw children and villagers suffering from a lack of clean water for drinking. He also found that many school children missed classes due to diseases caused by consuming contaminated water. The first project which started in a primary school by Sayers was the construction of concrete water tanks which were used to contain harvested rainwater during the rainy season.
First Water Tank
Sayers checking out the first concrete water tank that he built in a school in rural Cambodia
Sayers was asked of his motivation to help. His simple but profound response was – “Being happy by giving”. This small project from one school since 2005 expanded to cover over 900 schools now in providing drinking water to more than 200,000 children each year under the WASH Program implemented by BLCP. In Australia, Sayers established Asia Aid Limited, which now trades under the name of YourAid with the organisation being responsible for the funding and management oversight of BLCP.
During his several visits to Cambodia, Sayers found that the children were very enthusiastic in wanting to learn English from him. He could see that if the children were taught an additional international language like English, this would give the children the opportunity to acquire more general knowledge and would enable them to further their education as well increasing their employment prospects. Sayers then initiated English classes in several schools that now sees BLCP engaging more than 20 casual teachers giving English classes to over 1,000 students daily.
Sayers continued to find ways to improve the children’s welfare. He found that many children had very poor dental health and were suffering from significant tooth decay. He wanted to address this problem and finally found the solution in engaging a young but no less enthusiastic Sydney dentist, Cecilia So who was equally keen to be involved in the next project of establishing a dental clinic in a school to serve the local student population.
The first dental clinic was set up in 2008 and the Health & Dental Program now has three dental clinics with one mobile clinic which together provide dental healthcare to over 20,000 students annually. BLCP is currently the only NGO which provides free dental services in Kampot, Kampong Spieu and Takeo in Cambodia.
Award to Sayers
Receiving a certificate of recognition from the Government of Cambodia for the selfless work that he has done for the people of the country.
YourAid and BLCP
YourAid was formally established in 2015 and is a charity organisation registered with the national regulatory body known as Australian Charity and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC). In Australia, the organisation raises funds to undertake projects by its in-country dedicated program partner, Buddhist Library Cambodia Project (BLCP) which is a registered non-governmental organisation with the Cambodian government since 2005.
In addition to funding assistance, YourAid provides effective management oversight and strategic guidance to enable our exclusive partner organisation , BLCP to undertake various health, education and community programs in Cambodia. The work that we do and the services that we provide are accorded without any discrimination of race or religion. The same policy is adhered to in respect to our interactions with all our stakeholders including our employees and volunteers.
Good governance is considered to be a significant cornerstone for both YourAid and BLCP. Accordingly, we always seek to ensure that all our activities are undertaken with the greatest professional care. Our teachers are required to undergo regular training in their teaching skills and that all staff are made aware of their obligations to comply with policies to safeguard all stakeholders particularly with children. Our dentists under our Health program are checked by one of YourAid directors, Cecilia who is a practising dental professional in Australia and who regularly visits Cambodia. Cecilia is a highly regarded dentist and regularly lectures on advanced dentistry in universities. This goes to ensure that the level of services we deliver remains of a high standard.
BLCP operates in Kampot, Kampung Speu and Takeo Province. Currently, the main programs undertaken by BLCP for children and the local community are:
1. Education
BLCP provides after-school English, Computer, Non-formal and Pre-school classes. While Cambodia strives to improve its education system, BLCP aims to supplement any shortfall and equip the students so that they have sufficient English language proficiency and computer skills when they further their studies or enter the workforce. It also supports students for higher learning with scholarships and living assistance.
2. Health Care
Dental care is the primary focus of BLCP under its Health Program. It has three dental clinics and one mobile clinic that provide full dental services. Other projects include oral health education to school children and preventative dental treatment for early childhood. Eye screening and optical assistance in the form of free spectacles are given to children where needed.
3. WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene)
BLCP builds water tanks and installs water purification systems in schools to provide safe drinking water to students. We also build toilets, hand-washing facilities and incinerators in schools that cannot afford such facilities. We believe that healthy children will make happy children and in turn make them good students.
4. School Building Development
We help in providing school building facilities including new canteens and new classroom buildings to replace dilapidated or poor condition classrooms in schools. These more modern and equipped facilities would enable children to have a positive experience in attending school.
5. NGO Support
BLCP supports other local organisations involved in taking care of the welfare of children and in undertaking similar education programs including vocational training for school leaving young adults. These NGOs are well established and properly managed with monitoring by BLCP which channels technical, logistical and financial support.
6. Community Assistance and Development
As children form part of the community, we provide help to families in particularly the rural areas. We assist the poor by facilitating home improvement including constructing latrines, support their children with scholarships for education and meals, emergency food supplies and community education. We strive to make our assistance sustainable including co- funding the startup costs of agricultural projects and other income generating activities.
Our Philosophy
What we do is to enable you, the true carer, to make life better for someone else across the world. That is why both BLCP and YourAid act as facilitators and our promise to you is that “We Deliver” to the best of our abilities.
Our primary benefactor has agreed that all overhead costs of YourAid in Australia shall be fully covered by its regular contribution and that 100% of the donations by other kind contributors will go towards undertaking our various programs and activities where it is most needed overseas.
Leadership Team
Directors
Directors of YourAid and BLCP
Management
Management team of YourAid and BLCP