Charities

Not all Cambodian organisations work with equal efficiency and Khmer culture is not very conductive for civil society organisations. As a rule: things are never what they seem.

Money that comes in Cambodia through western organisations usually come with a scheme that makes most of the money flow back to the countries that provided support through expatriate salaries that are a hundredfold of local salaries and through other schemes.

If you want to sponsor the reconstruction of the country after the destruction the US directly and indirectly inflicted on it, these are some ideas that will put your money efficiently at work.

• Kantha Bopha Children's hospitals in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap. The hospital provides free treatment for about 65,000 poor children, and training for local medical staff. Every Saturday night, Dr Beat Richner, the Western doctor that runs the hospital, gives a free concert in the main hall of the Jayavarman VII children's hospital to raise funds.

• People Improvement Organisation. The way out of the garbage dump is through non-formal education.

• Mith Samlanh (Friends) a programme for street children, their families and their community. The organisation runs a $1,200,000 project and needs support.

• The Pookai Book Project is a small project in rural Cambodia. It supports the education of deprived Cambodians by providing books to the Angsoeng library in Takeo province and thereby improving the opportunities of impoverished rural youth. A small donation can go a long way!

• Cambodian Orphanage International helps orphans and street children in Cambodia.