Right to Education in Cambodia

Bunkhean Chhun speech during the 20th Anniversary of Paris Peace Agreement at NSW University,Faculty of Law, Sydney.5-6 Aug 2011.

Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen, my name is Bunkhean Chhun. I’m a high school teacher from Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA. I’m honoured to speak to you today. This is my first trip to Sydney. It is a vibrant city. I wish winter in Minnesota was like here, sunny and 20 degree. My topic today is the “Right to Education in Cambodia”

The Cambodian Constitution from 1993 states in Article 65 that:

The State shall protect and upgrade citizens' rights to quality education at all levels and shall take necessary steps for quality education to reach all citizens.

The State shall respect physical education and sports for the welfare of all Khmer citizens.

Does the Cambodian Government live up to what they pledged?

This afternoon we will look at some facts on why the Cambodian government failed to provide a quality education to Cambodian students.

First, a shortage of schools and classrooms, particularly in rural areas, limit the number of children who have access to a basic education.

Although most Cambodian villages have a primary school, many schools are still incomplete, meaning they do not offer a full grade 1-6 curriculum. Getting to a school where students can complete upper primary grades may mean traveling far distances from home, which is not always possible.

Access to secondary schools becomes even more difficult: only 5.4% of Cambodian villages have a lower secondary school and only 2% have an upper secondary school.

Second, poverty forces children to give up school to support their families' most basic needs. Some families cannot afford the opportunity cost of sending their children to school. The time their children would spend in class translates to lost time the children could be contributing to the family income. Common work for Cambodian children includes fieldwork, tending to cows, collecting recyclables, begging, fishing, and construction work.

The International Labor Organization estimates that nearly 20% of children ages 5-9 are involved in child labor; the percentage rises to 47% for children ages 10-14 and 34% for ages 15-17. Of the working children ages 5 to 17, only 45% attend school.

Third, low compensation forces teachers to collect informal school fees from students creating a barrier to education for poor children.

Primary school teachers' government salaries range between $20 and $50 per month, putting them below the poverty line.

To supplement their salaries, teachers collect informal school fees from students, usually $0.02 - $0.05 per day.

Although this may sound like pocket change, to a Cambodian family with five or more school-aged children, it is a substantial amount of money.

Although the Cambodian government has pledged free education, informal school fees keep many poor children from attending school.

Fourth, poorly trained teachers and high student-teacher ratios contribute to high grade-repeat rates among students.

Until 2005, there were minimal requirements for teachers to get a contract position with the government.

Many teachers, particularly in remote areas, had not even completed a secondary education.

A fast-growing young population meant that establishing minimum qualifications would exacerbate Cambodia's severe teacher shortage. The shortage contributes to high student-teacher ratios, putting 40-50 students in an average-sized primary school class. The combination of poorly trained teachers and high student-teacher ratios contribute to high grade-repeat rates.

In Siem Reap province alone, 12% of primary school students failed to advance to the next grade level at the end of the 2006-07 school year.

Also, the lack of school resources and little government funding lead to insufficient teaching material and school facilities.

The Cambodian government only pledges $1.50 - $1.75 per student per year to each primary school for teaching materials and school operating costs.

The funding is often insufficient for even the school's most basic needs, leaving teachers to buy things like chalk with their personal money.

In 2005 the total enrolment was about 3.2 million students.

Educational levels completed by literate persons aged 25 years and over are as follow:

• No educational level: 3.2%
• Primary not completed: 47.2%
• Primary: 26.8%
• Lower secondary: 18.8%
• Secondary/ Diploma: 2.2%
• Beyond Secondary: 1.8%

The adult literacy rate for Cambodian men is 85.1%; that for women is 70.9% [Ministry of Planning, 2009].

As we all know, education is a ticket out of poverty. The Cambodian government has done their job very poorly to educate their own young citizens. As a result poorly educated young citizens deny their rights to a good quality education. It means the gap between the rich and the poor becomes wider and wider.

This practice is totally opposite from the policy the Cambodian government has pledged: to eliminate poverty in the future.

There are many factors which contribute to poverty. One big factor we know for sure that contributes to poverty is education. Therefore Cambodian government must stop their irresponsible practices. They must provide quality education to all young citizens. After all the future will be in young people hands.

In closing I thank you very much for your time. May peace be with you!