What
makes
us
different?
Trust
Six years of community ties means parents
trust us. The community we work in does not trust the
authorities or outsiders. They are suspicious and
secretive, especially about child trafficking. When we
first began weekly boarding, many parents refused to let
their children stay for fear they would be abused or even
sold. We have abusive parents who avoid our social worker
but continue, thankfully, to send their children to our
project.
Thrift
We don't waste donors' money. We use local
products and aim for an inexpensive working-class standard
of care. By working with other NGOs, we've being able to do
even more without directly bearing the cost, such as eye
surgery and counsellor training. We pay fair wages with
high performance expectations for our staff. We track every
purchase with receipts and monthly reports.
Truth
Child trafficking is an ugly thing. It makes
for snappy headlines with heartstring-tugging stories. But,
the truth of child trafficking in Cambodia is complex. Most
of the children in Riverkids would rather be sold to
support their family than lose their family. We have to
understand why parents sell their children to stop
trafficking. At Riverkids, we tell the full truth. We
report in detail what we're doing and what works and what
doesn't.