AKP - Agent Kampuchea Press

via CAAI

Japan Grants over US$100,000 to Construct School Buildings in Kampot Province

Phnom Penh, January 11, 2011 AKP – The government of Japan has provided a total of US$134,920 in grant to the Association of School Aid in Cambodia (ASAC) for the construction of school buildings for Hun Sen Trauy Koh Lower Secondary School in Kampot province.

The grant contract was signed here yesterday by Japanese Ambassador to Cambodia H.E. Kuroki Masafumi and ASAC Chief Managing Director Ms. Watana Be Shigeko.

On the occasion, H.E. Kuroki Masafumi said that the Royal Government of Cambodia has been giving priority to capacity building and education. The Royal Government of Japan has thus supported the educational infrastructure construction and helped build science laboratory buildings in different pedagogy centers and strengthen teachers’ capacity building in Cambodia, he said.

The Japanese ambassador hoped that through this project, the ties of friendship between the Japanese and Cambodian peoples will be further fostered.

Some 585 students in Trauy Sla Lower Secondary School will benefit from a better education environment, he said.

For her part, Ms. Watana Be Shigeko said that ASAC, established since 16 years ago, has so far built 172 school buildings of 851 classrooms across Cambodia. –AKP

By Théng

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First Meeting on Worst Forms of Child Labor Elimination Dissemination Campaign Held

Phnom Penh, January 11, 2011 AKP – The first ever discussion meeting on the 2010-2012 Worst Forms of Child Labor Elimination Dissemination Campaign was held here today at the Ministry of Information.

Representatives from the Cambodian Ministry of Information, Interior, Education and Labor as well as those from ILO IPEC and employers’ and workers’ organizations attended the meeting.

On the occasion, Mr. MP Joseph, ILO IPEC chief technical advisor, praised the Information Ministry, especially the National Television of Cambodia (TVK), and the Ministries of Interior, Education and Labor for their important roles in contribution to the elimination of child labor.

Cambodia is a model country toward the elimination of the worst forms of child labor by 2016, he stressed.

For his part, H.E. Kim Kunnawadh, TVK director general and chairman of the dissemination commission for raising awareness to prevent the worst forms of child labor, called for a joint cooperation to save Cambodian children from child labor and to give them bright future.

According to H.E. Kim Kunnawadh, also spokesman for the media enforcement program in the campaign against the worst forms of child labor, around 300,000 children are found in the worst forms of child labor in Cambodia.

Mr. Theng Chorvirith, official of the ILO IPEC national program, briefed the participants on the action program of the child labor elimination dissemination campaign in Cambodia.

The two-year program implemented since 2010 in 15 provinces and cities is mainly aimed at informing the public of the impacts of child labor and gathering resources so as to achieve the twin objectives – reducing the number of child labor from 16.5 percent to 8 percent by 2015 and eliminating of the worst forms of child labor by 2016, he said. –AKP

By SOKMOM Nimul