Setup and support financial co-operatives to help Cambodia’s rural poor. In addition to helping establish new co-ops, CAC provides training to co-op leaders, monitors co-op operations and promotes networking and sharing between the co-ops so that they can learn and support each other.
Help villagers setup agri-businesses and micro-enterprises to relieve poverty. This includes teaching them business management skills and helping them access markets.
Promote the benefits of using Agricultural Cooperatives (ACs) to villagers, especially children. This includes encouraging villagers to open savings accounts and teaching them basic money management skills.
Provide capacity of financial management to Agricultural Cooperatives (ACs) so that the Agricultural Cooperatives are able to manage their services.
We undertake larger scale projects that deliver benefits to a whole village or group of farmers. These projects usually involve capacity-building and increased access to markets and better selling power through farming co-operatives.
For example, we are working in the Kampong Chhnang province on an agriculture capacity building project with our partners, DGRV – the German cooperative organisation.
This project involves using our 10 co-operatives in the province as the structure to provide agricultural training and consultancy services to farmers there. Farmers will learn the latest knowledge and technologies in order to increase efficiency and productivity on their farms.
How we combat poverty
The Co-operative Association of Cambodia (CAC) is a member-owned, not-for-profit, not-for-charity organisation. We combat poverty by giving farmers and the rural poor access to financial services they can trust – services provided by co-operatives that the villagers own and run. This helps them to save money securely (without risking their money by hiding it at home) and gives them access to loans to start or expand businesses (without having to resort to local money lenders who charge high interest). CAC also educates villagers on how manage money, equipping them with skills and knowledge so they can build a better future. With 80% of Cambodia’s population living in rural areas and less than 5% of the population having a bank account, the impact of providing access to low cost financial services and education about using those services is significant. Learn how co-operatives help the poor.
Here’s an example of the impact of our work.
A family from a village in Kampon Chnang province have been members of their local agricultural co-operative since it began three years ago. They initially borrowed $25 from the co-operative to purchase seeds and fertiliser to grow vegetables to sell at the local market. Before the co-op was established they had to borrow from the local money lender, who charged 10% interest per month. They couldn’t borrow from mcirofinance institutions as they did not have assets to secure a loan.
They have now increased their income enough to buy their own home and have expanded their vegetable production on nearby rented plots. They have a $500 loan from the co-op and are paying it back and saving money each month. They hope to continue to expand their business with the goal of sending their children to university.
We work with institutional donors from various countries to implement programs to build capacity and relieve poverty in the villages of Cambodia. If you are looking for a partner in Cambodia who specialises in agri-business and agricultural capacity building then please contact us to start a discussion.