Help support access to online learning in rural Cambodia

COVID-19 has irreparably damaged so many lives this year; but, in a deeply impoverished country like Cambodia, the pandemic has gone beyond healthcare crisis to reach a new level of humanitarian tragedy.

Poverty without access to education entrenches poverty. We are asking for your help to get rural Cambodian children, supported by the Ponheary Ly Foundation, access to online learning.

With $15,000 the PLF will purchase data cards, computers, AV equipment and print study guides for students.

A little goes a long way - starting at $30, you can provide internet access for a month.

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The PLF Story : “School is the Answer”

Our family (the Staffords) first met Ponheary Ly in July of 2007. Ponheary is a genocide survivor - she lost her father to Pol Pot soldiers and her sister to the devastating effects of malnourishment. Her efforts to reverse the devastating effects of this sadistic purge started small; recovery for Ponheary started 15 years ago with the support of one child to attend school and learn to read and write. But her vision was unwavering. Ponheary saw the potential in re-educating not just one child, but her entire nation.

In a country of terrible poverty with over 50% of the rural population living at or below the poverty line, children suffer not only from lack of a future, but lack of access to the most basic of education, health care and nutritional needs. Cambodia’s low GDP places the country as the poorest in the Asian region, with the highest levels of illiteracy. But there is hope for change as half of Cambodia’s population is under the age of 21. Today, the PLF has sponsored over 2,800 students in almost 10 schools through rural Cambodia - increasing national school attendance and literacy rates. And in order for children to properly learn, the PLF offers a basic meal each day, access to medical care, clean water and bicycles for children to transport themselves to and from school. Over the last 15 years, the PLF has even made it possible for an increasing cadre of its students to make it through to high school, for some university and jobs beyond. In 2010, Ponheary was nominated as CNN hero - she was effecting change in a poorly understood and desperate nation and the world listened.

COVID-19 has brought this monumental progress to a screeching halt. Over 2 million students nationwide are unable to study with many schools shut down completely and no access to Internet or materials (with the most vulnerable students not receiving food, as school for many children also meant an opportunity to be fed). COVID-19 has destroyed the Cambodian economy so dependent on tourism. While some schools have started to re-open in November, for most rural children, they are back working in the fields to help eke out a subsistence living. It is beyond terrifying to watch as Ponheary’s efforts for the last 15 years unravel with ease.

With your help, we aim to raise $15,000 to give, PLF students access to online learning. With the funds, the PLF will purchase Koompi computers and supporting equipment. Koompi Computers are a Cambodian product (so thus also help to support the local economy) and are equipped with an amazing Khmer Language Resource program. The PLF piloted 5 of the computers at a girl’s dormitory and the feedback was resoundingly positive - students finding “it easier to understand and learn, being able to pause, replay and chat with neighbors about their lessons”. The PLF hopes to set up Google Classrooms on the Koompis, working with volunteer & retired teachers from the US to support online learning. Remote study groups, access to virtual book clubs even the opportunity to code - the possibilities for learning with these computers are ENDLESS.

The PLF motto: "We will educate our children. We will do it one by one, step by step." – access to online learning is the next and desperately needed step, please help us turn this into a reality.