Thailand and Southeast Asia Regional Office

Foundation for Poverty Alleviation and Paralegals (FPAP)

Working with the people, not for them

by Naurin Ahmad-Zaki

Ol is a poor rice farmer who lives in a small village in Udong in the Kandal province of Cambodia, not far from the country's capital, Phnom Penh. Since he and the other farmers of the area hardly have any source of income after the completion of the harvest in spring and after the rainy season, they decided to form a group of five men and join the credit programme of FPAP (Foundation for Poverty Alleviation and Paralegals). They took a loan of $500 US for six months and divided the money into two projects. Ol and a partner now produce cement rings which can be used to build latrines, water jars and underground water storage containers for domestic and agricultural use. They are able to produce around 80 rings in a month, out of which they sell approximately 55 rings.  

The other three partners of the group produce little metal rings for cows which they sell on a wholesale basis to traders in Phnom Penh. One of the men learned these skills from his grandfather and his father and passed on his knowledge to his partners. The men are confident that they will be able to repay the loan within the given time period and are already planning to take up a larger loan in order to expand their fledgling businesses.

This credit programme of CAMFED/FPAP, a non-governmental organisation (NGO) based in Phnom Penh was started in the middle of 1995 among 15 different community saving associations. Their loans are given for income-generating activities, mostly to buy poultry and piglets or for the purchase of fertilisers. After the successful initiation of the programme in one district, CAMFED/FPAP expanded it to six other districts and presently there are around 1000 members participating in the programme. ''The saving groups each consist of five people which then form village associations. Each member has to save a minimum of 1000 riel per month. Presently we have 60 credit groups in 40 villages,'' explains Kong Thann, the founder and head of CAMFED/FPAP.

''Before starting with CAMFED/FPAP in 1993, I asked myself why some people are rich and others are poor. My theory is that the reason is basically the use of time. According to Buddhism life is divided into three stages. The first one from childhood till the age of 30 is a period of learning. The second and middle period is a time for working and the last period which starts when a human being is around 50 years of age and lasts till death is a period when a person is supposed to retire from work and prepare for the next life. But here in Cambodia, most people spend their whole lives working, from childhood till the time they die. But even then they don't utilise their time in a fruitful way; they don't reflect on the type of work they are doing. They should ask themselves questions like which work is more profitable, where can I be more successful and so on. Thus some people end up being poor all their lives,'' laments Thann.

CAMFED/FPAP has set up a training centre in Kandal province since it is its approach to train key persons in the communities such as Buddhist monks, lay men and lay women in skills of community development so that they in turn can become self-reliant. ''We try to teach them what we call 'survival skills in the community'.  These skills might include how to go about sanitation and hygiene in a proper way, how to keep the water in the reservoirs clean and how to maintain your house. These skills are easy to disseminate, however, their execution is another story,'' laughs Thann.

The training sessions are divided into three cycles, namely survival skills, economic skills and cultural preservation and environment. Each cycle consists of one month of teaching sessions and two months of follow-up work. During the month of teaching, lessons are taught by five trainers on weekends on a full-day basis.

The total number of trainees since November 1994 is 95 persons in 32 villages. The training curriculum comprises community development, health, sanitation, water use and storage, saving and credit banks, rice banks, development, reforestation, environment and income generation.

During the cycle in which the farmers are taught economic skills ranging from well-digging to kitchen gardening, one of the main areas the villagers are keen on expanding their knowledge in is the maintenance of clean water. ''One of the main problems in Cambodia is water. Even if the villagers dig deep wells, they only find contaminated or low-quality water with a high content of either calcium or rust and thus not suitable for anything. CAMFED/FPAP assists the farmers in deepening existing community ponds  where the rain water can be stored for the dry season. Wells are also vital for survival during the long periods of dry weather. Other than the traditional wells which often do not yield sufficient amounts of water, the villagers are taught by CAMFED/FPAP how to dig artesian wells and thus provide cleaner and larger quantities of water. CAMFED/FPAP also provides the rings for these wells, but the members of the communities have to do the digging and building themselves.

Another way of helping the communities is to take care of the children.  

Since most women are required to work alongside the men, CAMFED/FPAP has set up kindergartens for the younger children who often come in the way of their parents. Presently there are 12 kindergartens with 600 children in Udong. CAMFED/FPAP finances the teachers, young girls and women, often  from the community themselves.

After a visit to Bangladesh, the concept of giving small loans to women to start their own businesses by the now famous Grameen Bank impressed Thann and CAMFED/FPAP started a credit programme on the same lines for women as well as for men. With the money, many women start a small weaving business at home or buy their own poultry or piglets.   

With the relentless and consistent engagement of CAMFED/FPAP in its chosen areas, there is a visible improvement in the standard of living of those who participate in their programmes as well as in that of their neighbours. This is manifested in their improved health and sanitation conditions, in the increase in vegetables and cattle and in the amount of money they are able to save. ''We believe that it is very important to work with the people and not for them, if we want to see them succeed in the long run,'' insists Kong Thann.