Life-giving water in Cambodia

In 2008, just one legacy was enough to support a year’s work in the impoverished Siem Reap province of northern Cambodia.

Fourteen remote villages were provided with access to clean water, sanitation facilities and agricultural support – bringing lasting change to the lives of thousands of men, women and children.

In rural parts of Siem Reap, few communities have access to clean running water or proper drainage and irrigation systems. Waterborne diseases such as typhoid and salmonella are common and many children die in infancy as a result.

Most families rely on subsistence farming to survive and when crops fail, they go hungry – 88 per cent of families lack rice for an average of four months of the year, and many children suffer from malnutrition.

One legacy was enough to help change all of this. SCIAF is funding the construction of new wells and water pumps; providing, health education, access to basic medicines and health care; and supporting farmers to cultivate different types of rice, mushrooms and fruit trees.

People in Siem Reap can now look forward to a brighter future: farmers can grow enough food to feed their families; women and children no longer have to walk for miles each day to collect dirty water (also allowing these children to attend school); and fewer people are falling ill and dying from preventable diseases.

We are incredibly grateful for this and every legacy we receive – no matter what size, legacies enable SCIAF to save and change lives.