The Girls Access to Education (GATE) program in Phnom Penh district is the prime responsibility of Lotus Outreach Australia. This program currently helps 100 – 150 Cambodian girls from very poor families to get an education. In addition to providing scholarships, uniforms, school books etc the girls receive health checks, and the Rice Support Program provides rice to the very poorest families. This encourages parents to allow their daughters to stay at school instead of having them go out to work to supply family income.
How the GATE program works
Lotus Outreach Australia (LOA) works with our In-Country partner Cambodian Women’s Crisis Centre (CWCC) who in turn work with Local Education Working Groups (LEWG) to identify girls most at risk in our target communities, offer them scholarships and help to keep them in school. CWCC and the LEWG then provide the crucial monitoring and regular meetings with students and their families that means that GATE girls attend school consistently and achieve good grades, and eventually graduate.
Working with the Community
LOA also works closely with its office in Phnom Penh (Lotus Outreach Cambodia, LOCAM). LOCAM and CWCC support the GATE program by running Community Education Sessions on Human Rights issues emphasising the value to families, communities and the country of educating girls: and the consequences of trafficking, domestic violence, and child rights. LOCAM and CWCC also run workshops on career guidance and vocational training, opening up possibilities of meaningful careers and work for the GATE graduates.
Real, positive outcomes
GATE girls whose families are illiterate are becoming the first high school graduates in their families. Mothers are coming forward to tell us how important schooling is for their daughters. Many of the girls are starting to see themselves in a new light – focusing on graduating, going on to further education and a good job, and in turn making sure that their future children will be educated and independent too. Sign up to our newsletter to receive regular updates on the progress of the girls in the program and hear stories from the girls LOA is supporting.