Projects supported by You(!) in Q4 of 2021
WASH Program: We successfully installed 20 Australian made Pioneer water tanks in 17 schools and 3 health centres in Kampot, Kampong Speu and Takeo provinces. Water is harvested from the roofs of school buildings and channelled into the tanks. The total cost of about USD50,000 was primarily funded by the LUFF Foundation and your generous donations.
While the water liner in the new Pioneer tanks have anti-bacterial features, the next phase of our water improvement initiative in the current year will involve the roll out of a water purification systems (WPS) in each school where our tanks have been built. The WPS is based on the use of a ultra high filtration device to eliminate any contaminants including harmful microbes. The introduction of the WPS would go towards making the drinking water safe and to meet WHO standards. We would welcome your contribution to fund the WPS with implementation envisaged in the second quarter of 2021.
Sanitation: It is not just drinking water that we are making available to school children but access to potable water for hygiene is crucial to minimise the risk of contracting diseases. The lack of adequate sanitation limits participation and school attendance, especially for girls.
We have recently built new toilet facilities with water supply for Pothivong Primary School. The new design incorporates gender separation and handwash facilities outside the toilet. This is a significant improvement over the old 2 cubicle toilet meant for use by the 150 students.
Classroom Construction: We completed the construction of a 3-classroom project for Kdat Secondary School in December 2020. This is the second building using new materials in the form of pre-fabricated metal sheets which is more economical. The cost savings of about 40% has enabled us to undertake the construction of better sanitation facilities. It goes to show that we are always working to make your contributions go further.
Community Assist: In addition to support from the public, two other donor organisations, namely LUFF Foundation and Club 500 continue to contribute towards the community through food programs and other forms of family assistance which are implemented by BLCP with oversight by YourAid.
The Community Assist Program provided was especially helpful during the epidemic as several families were impacted by unemployment following the closure of factories and the return of unemployed workers who had been working abroad. A total of 1,190 parcels were distributed with almost 4,000 poor people deriving benefit since commencement of the program in the second half of last year.