Statement 
The health situation in Cambodia is one of the most critical in the world. Most public health structures (hospitals and health care centers) do not function and mobile health care professionals no longer visit villages. Buildings are nonexistent or in a state of deterioration, and the staff, unmotivated by low salaries and difficult working conditions, are rarely to be found on duty. In addition, the public facilities are rarely used even when they function, as the population largely gives themselves medication or consults private practitioners who only rarely provide quality services. A large part of the population has no access to drinking water and only a low percentage use latrines. Mothers have a very limited knowledge of health care issues, and they hinder the prevention of illness among children.
Project background
Enfants&Développement (E&D) has been running a development program in the field of health, education, and community development in Cambodia since 1984. In 1993, the organization started a primary health care project in the Takeo province in the Samrong district. This project was completed at the end of 1998, and the provincial health department then asked E&D to put into place a similar program in a neighboring district: Bati. The project was then extended to the district of Kong Pisei in 2002.
Objectives
General Objective:
To improve the state of health for the populations in the operational districts of Bati and Kong Pisei, in particular that of mothers and children, by strengthening patient care at the level of fixed and mobile health facilities through the rehabilitation of the healthcare infrastructure and improvement of the knowledge and behavior of health issues of the population.
Location
The program operates in Cambodia , in the operational districts (OD) of Bati, in the northern region of Takeo province, and in the bordering OD, Kong Pisei , in the eastern zone of Kompong Speu province.
Bati is situated 40 km south of Phnom Penh . The road linking Phnom Penh to the provincial capital runs through the OD and because that road was resurfaced in 2002, this district is very accessible. It is comprised of 13 communes and of 245 villages with a total population of 118,360 inhabitants, according to the 1998 census. The OD of Kong Pisei, on the other hand, is situated to the West of Bati, and covers two administrative districts comprised of 27 communes and 459 villages with a total population of 222,498.
The two regions are prone to flooding as they are situated close to the Tonle Bassac River and a mountainous region. However, in 2002, the area was affected by the worst drought the country has known since 1995, following two consecutive years of flooding.
The districts' resources are mainly linked to subsistence farming, specifically that of rice. There is also a small harvest of palm sugar and some silk cultivation. Fresh water fishing (during the rainy season) and the raising of ducks are also common.
In the OD of Bati, the program supports the 4 health centers of Roveang, Khvav, Kraing Leav and Daung and the 95 villages that depend on these centers for preventative and curative actions.In the OD of Kong Pisei, the program supports the district management team, 4 health centers and their dependent villages.
Beneficiaries
The entire population of the two districts including 118,000 people in Bati and 210,000 in Kong Pisey, has benefited from the actions undertaken. However, it is the inhabitants, particularly the women and the children of the 193 villages in the areas covered by the 8 health centers assisted by E&D, that have directly benefited from the project actions carried out over four years. This equals 98,328 people, broken into:
- 4,424 women (15-49 years old).
- 22,123 pregnant women.
- 1,645 children (school aged).
- 12,995 children aged 1 to 5 years.
- 3,343 children under the age of 1.
At the same time, 630 villagers ( midwives , health care professionals, peer educators .) have benefited from training put in place by the project.
Local Partners
- Ministry of Health
- Provincial Departments of Health in Takeo and Kompong Speu provinces
- Operational Districts of Bati ( Takeo ) and Kong Pisei ( Kompong Speu )
Project Duration : 1999-2004
Funding
- European Union
- Association for Action and Community Development (AADC)
- Private funds.
Staff
Expatriates: 1 program director
Local Personnel: 9 people (coordinator, project officers (health center, midwife trainers, health educators.), accountant, driver, guard, secretary.)
