It's pretty easy to get a kid
into school in Cambodia. Keeping him there is a different
problem!
Trafficking isn't simply poverty-driven. There are a lot of
risk factors, and some of them - gender and ethnicity for
example - we can't change. But other risk factors such as
abusive or neglectful parents, low education, poor family
health (which leads to debts and poverty) and so on, can be
improved.
Riverkids works on three levels:
1. We identify risks that can be changed and intervene in
practical direct ways, such as arranging child care or
medical help.
2. Through education and support, vulnerable children have
more economic options and value, giving their parents
incentive not to sell them.
3. We openly monitor the vulnerable children. It's easier
to abuse or sell an isolated unknown child than one
regularly visited by social workers and registered with a
project.
Core
services:
Kindergarten for
younger children
Vocational training for teenagers
Transport from school, Riverkids and home
Daily lunch
After-school tuition in Khmer and English
School registration
School stationary, bags and uniforms
Regular medical and dental check-ups
Family visits by social worker
Emergency counseling for at-risk families
Projects:
Weekly
boarding with meals, laundry and two housemothers
Scholarships for promising students to private school
Health and community workshops
Immunization for children and families
Individual medical care for special needs kids
Parents' day at Riverkids
Books and toys library
Family and child trafficking research