Ponheary Ly Foundation – Siem Reap, CAMBODIA (4 Girls)
The Ponheary Ly Foundation (PLF) is a non-profit organization registered in the USA whose goal is to locate and serve the many children in remote northern Cambodia who live in the poorest rural villages and do not have access to equitable educational opportunities. It started small in 2006 with one child and has grown to an independent charity harnessing support worldwide to assist almost 2800 children and young people a year. Over half of Cambodia’s population is under 18 and half the population living in rural villages is illiterate. PLF takes a holistic approach to the communities they work with, helping to support better health care, nutrition, & transport alongside access to education. It supports the established government schools that already exist in their villages, and provides an opportunity for all children to attend.
Ponheary Ly was one of the first projects supported by PAWA and we have been there as it has grown and changed. For many years we have provided educational support to a small cohort of girls from outlying villages who live a a residential Dormitory so that they can safely attend secondary school in Siem Reap. There is still significant trauma from war and also extreme poverty and these girls have been identified as future young leaders. Ponheary Ly radically revised its delivery of education to cater for online schooling under Covid and the Dormitory girls and recent PAWA graduates led the way in trialling new digital approaches for younger cohorts. In the meantime there are better options now for quality secondary education nearer to the girls homes and so 2024 will be the final year of operation of the girls Dorm in Siem Riep. PAWA has worked with Ponheary Ly to develop a replacement secondary school sponsorship scheme as described in the next entry.
