Endorsement Of Safe Reopening Of Sihanoukville Schools

 

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

During the event, Minister H.E. Dr. HANG Chuon Naron took the opportunity to greet Prince Group and Plan International Cambodia delegates with best wishes. In addition to this project, he thanked Prince Group for their active participation in previous years and expressed his enthusiasm for future initiatives that will benefit the education sector.

H.E. Dr. HANG Choun Naron praised Prime Minister Samdech Hun Sen's outstanding leadership, highlighting the effectiveness of the Kingdom's Covid-19 preventive measures, with over 90% of Cambodians vaccinated and strict adherence to the Covid-19 preventive standards (3 dos and don'ts). Controlling imported cases, including Omicron, has allowed Cambodia to reopen its economy as of the end of 2021. He did, however, emphasise the importance of continuing to take precautions such as washing hands frequently, maintaining social distance, and wearing masks whenever exposed to public areas such as schools.

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

“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 they stand to strengthen Cambodia's pandemic resilience.

“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.”

WASH interventions by Plan International Cambodia, which has been working in the country since 2002, have proven to be effective community-based solutions that can ensure well-maintained water points and sanitation facilities, empowering people to take control of their public health with funding from Prince Foundation and corporate partnerships. Over 6.6 million people in South Asia now have better access to water, sanitation, and hygiene.

Prince Group has been actively involved in youth development, most recently launching the Chen Zhi Scholarship, a financial aid programme that promises to transform the lives of 400 Cambodian university students over the next seven years. Prince Group will contribute full tuition and stipends totaling more than $2 million. Read more here

Canopy Sands Development, a member of Prince Group, which is working on Ream City, a coastal development project aimed at helping transform Sihanoukville, has also recently distributed care packages to M'Lop Tapang, one of Sihanoukville's leading charitable organisations, as part of its ongoing efforts to support local communities as Cambodia reopens for post-pandemic recovery.