What’s behind Cambodia’s struggle to cut down illiteracy?

Illiteracy has always been a big social problem in Cambodia, and despite ongoing efforts and engagement by various agents, both national and international, in missions, projects, campaigns to enhance literacy and education among Cambodians, the process seems to be full of struggles, with not-so-impressive improvement. A substantial part of the population still hasn’t been through any formal education to gain the basic ability to read and write, and others who have participated in some sort of education get later relapsed back into illiteracy. So who is to blame? Is it mainly due to the inefficiency and incapability of our government, or do other factor play a bigger contributing role?

            To study this matter more thoroughly, let us begin by looking at why many Cambodians do not go to schools in the first place. The blame can certainly be partly put on poverty. Many, especially those who breathe with the help of subsistence farming that produces only enough for them to survive, depends on the contribution of every single labor in availability. Little is left for such families to think about education of their children. Besides, typical cultural perception among Cambodians in term of gender roles is also believed by many to be another cause. Many conventional families prefer that their girls stay home and do housework, and if resources are limited, boys are usually biased when it comes to education.

            However, I believe interference by the government and various NGOs can respond well to these afore-mentioned problems. The government can and should invest more in building schools, equipped with enough facilities and teaching staff, even in remote areas, so that no child is denied education simply because schools are not present in their community and it costs too much to go miles from home to school. Not only should institutions for formal education be in place, but other programs should also be there for non-formal education, where illiterate adults can go. But how do those adults get interested in joining such programs or in sending their children to schools? The answer is in the hand of the super powerful tool of the modern days, the media –whether it’s TV, radio, billboards, or posters. Inspiring clips/spots to encourage people’s involvement in education should be prevalent in the local media. Accordingly, people get informed about the importance of education, the ready availability of education and the like.

            There is no doubt that the Cambodian government and many local NGOs have been implementing similar strategies, yet immense success hasn’t been achieved, most probably because not enough has been done. In my opinion, the government should double, or even triple, their efforts on what they are doing now to boost literacy.