Safe Reopening Of Sihanoukville Schools

 

Prince Holding Group ("Prince Group"), one of Cambodia's largest and fastest-growing conglomerates, has signed an agreement with Plan International Cambodia, one of the world's leading development and humanitarian organisations dedicated to advancing children's rights and gender equality, for the installation of pedal-operated handwashing stations at all school levels in Preah Sihanouk province. The MoU was signed in the presence of H.E. Dr. HANG Chuon Naron, Minister of Education, Youth, and Sport, at the Ministry of Education, Youth, and Sport (MoEYS) in Phnom Penh.

Minister H.E. Dr. HANG Chuon Naron used the occasion to convey his best wishes to delegates from the Prince Group Cambodia and Plan International Cambodia. Additionally to this project, he expressed gratitude to Prince Group for their active participation over the years and expressed hope for additional initiatives benefiting the education sector in the future.

H.E. Dr. HANG Choun Naron commended Prime Minister Samdech Hun Sen's outstanding leadership and emphasised the effectiveness of the Kingdom's Covid-19 preventive measures, which include vaccination of over 90% of Cambodians and strict adherence to the Covid-19 preventive standards (3 dos and don'ts). Cambodia has been able to reopen its economy since the end of 2021 due to the control of imported cases, including Omicron. He emphasised, however, the continued need for precautions such as frequent hand washing, social distancing, and wearing masks when in public areas such as schools. Learn more

Prince Foundation, the conglomerate's philanthropic arm, will collaborate with Plan International Cambodia to implement a Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) intervention programme from March to April 2022 as part of a 'Back to School' campaign. Additionally, the Foundation will provide financial and operational support for a variety of activities aimed at assisting the government's effort to safely reopen schools.

“Prince Foundation, which has previously launched a national level initiative through our recent Chen Zhi Scholarship initiative, is also looking to work more actively at a provincial level. We want to ensure a sustainable recovery across provinces, and we are pleased to get a chance to work with Plan International Cambodia,” said Cliff Koh, Secretary-General of Prince Group. “We also look forward to collaborating further with the MoEYS in the new year to ensure children get the facilities they need to make education safer.”

Between March and April, Prince Foundation and Plan International will complete the handover of pedal-operated handwashing stations to officials from the Ministry of Education, Youth, and Sport, as well as provincial and municipal administration officials in Sihanoukville. Such programmes have shown measurable results in other countries over the years and are expected to bolster Cambodia's pandemic preparedness.

“This collaboration between Prince Foundation and Plan International Cambodia will help ensure that children, especially the girls, can go back to school safely after the interruptions by COVID-19. Installing these pedal-operated handwashing stations is a very important intervention to help reduce risks from COVID-19 and ensure that children can access quality education which will benefit them for life,” said Yi Kimthan, Acting Country Director of Plan International Cambodia. “On behalf of the students from the schools in Preah Sihanouk province, I would like to express our gratitude to Prince Foundation for this first exciting project together. This project is under Plan International Cambodia’s Healthy Start and Lifelong Learning Strategic Programs, which is part of Plan International Cambodia’s mission partnering to empower 2.5 million girls, especially adolescent girls and young women in Cambodia, from 2021 to 2026.”

With the support of Prince Foundation and corporate partners, Plan International Cambodia's WASH interventions have demonstrated to be effective community-based solutions for ensuring well-maintained water points and sanitation facilities, empowering people to take control of their public health. Over 6.6 million people in South Asia now have access to improved water, sanitation, and hygiene.

Prince Group has made a concerted effort to support youth development, most recently launching the Chen Zhi Scholarship, a financial aid programme that will transform the lives of 400 Cambodian university students over the next seven years. The Prince Group will cover all tuition and stipend costs in excess of US$2 million.

Canopy Sands Development, a subsidiary of Prince Group, which is developing Ream City, a coastal development project aimed at transforming Sihanoukville, recently distributed care packages to one of the city's leading charitable organisations, M'Lop Tapang, as part of its ongoing efforts to assist local communities as Cambodia reopens for post-pandemic recovery.