The Cambodia Project, Inc. (CPI) is a nonprofit organization that builds sustainable communities through secondary education, in developing countries, beginning in rural Cambodia.

Our Vision

Our vision is for all children worldwide to have access to high-quality secondary education. In order to achieve our vision, we believe in an innovative model for education that is built upon holistic education that includes health services, green technology in our school constructions, and economic sustainability from local revenue generation.

Under the Khmer Rouge, the education system in Cambodia suffered tragically; the academic infrastructure and professional culture were destroyed. An entire generation of educators was murdered during the genocide.

The Cambodian education system is in dire need of programmatic reform. This need is especially pressing among secondary school children. The government of Cambodia recognizes the need for improving access to and quality of education, but current government policies focus on primary education. Donors, local and international organizations, and UN agencies support the government in this policy, with little emphasis placed on secondary education.

CPI has received endorsements from the Governor of Kep Municipality, H.E. Hash Sareth; the Deputy Director of Education for Kep Municipality, Nguon Hean; and the Director of Education for Takeo Province, Nuth Khon.

Currently, Cambodia is the 4th poorest country in the world and 131st out of 177 countries on the Human Development Index, which is based on life expectancy figures, level of education, and standard of living (www.hdr.undp.org). Today, only 30% of children and 22% of girls age 12 – 15 are enrolled in secondary school.

The Cambodia Project was founded to provide secondary education in rural communties worldwide, where opportunities are scarce.  The Cambodia Project seeks to give all children, regardless of their financial situation, access to secondary education.  This vision is to give them the opportunity to complete their education and prepare themselves for the workforce or post-secondary education.  This will enhance the community and create the basis for improving development and economic capabilities in the regions. This is how The Cambodia Project came to identify three supporting pillars of healthcare, environmental sustainability, and economic sustainability.

Our Mission

CPI's Theory of Change - The Cambodia Project believes, if poor, rural children worldwide have access to comprehensive secondary education that is both economically and environmentally sustainable; if their families have access to high quality health services, then economic and community growth will be stimulated, helping to alleviate the cycle of poverty in developing communities.

Encouraged by the support of local governments, The Cambodia Project works in collaboration with communities to provide innovative and replicable school models, high quality transformative educational resources, and better trained teachers in both the public and private education systems that ultimately offer students increased opportunity.

In addition to an excellent standard of education, we offer comprehensive healthcare programs and green technology for school construction and maintenance. Based on this model, each school will become financially self-reliant and locally managed after year five.

Our mission's viability:

1. Holistic approach to education includes leadership training and professional development
2. Inclusive access to children regardless of their gender, ethnicity, religion, or disabilities
3. Comprehensive healthcare that includes a clinic and preventive medecine
4. Environmentally innovative structures with green energy generating facilities
5. Local, national, and international support, as well as intellectual and financial mediums which help to ensure our success

CPI is committed to building secondary schools in Kep municipality and Kampot province, three hours drive south of the capital Phnom Penh. We will provide secondary-level education opportunities and inclusive development programs that would not otherwise be available to children in these rural areas.

Inclusive education is founded on the idea of education that is accessible to any individual regardless of gender, ethnicity, religion, or disability.

CPI will employ educators from a pool of qualified public school teachers in the region and recruit new graduates from the local teacher training colleges, providing employment opportunities in an otherwise narrow job market. One-third of teachers will be hired part-time from neighboring public schools to supplement their income. Leadership training and teacher professional development programs will be conducted in order to enhance the long-term impact of CPI employees on its students and the surrounding community.

The sustainable funding model developed by CPI to finance school operation costs is a unique combination of diverse revenue generating streams. For example, microfinance will provide loans for tuition, entrepreneurial graduates and students’ families, thus facilitating economic development in the school areas. Revenues from this program will be utilized for scholarships to subsidize the lowest income students’ tuition. Additionally, CPI’s model combines agriculture and craft revenues, ecotourism, and strategic partnerships with NGOs to provide conditional cash grants to families to ensure student attendance, tuition subsidies, and equitable teacher salaries and incentives.

Our Innovation

The Cambodia Project aims to accomplish two major social objectives. First, we seek to improve access to and quality of secondary education in rural Cambodia through the construction and management of CPI secondary schools. Second, we aim to build the capacity and improve the quality of teachers and curriculum at local public schools. CPI leadership believes these schools will positively affect the quality of education for students at CPI schools and in the surrounding public school system, while simultaneously improving the quality of life in the neighboring communities.

It is CPI's excellent standard of education, in conjunction with our holistic and innovative approach that includes health, environmental, and financially-sustainable strategies that will ensure the vast social impact that we aspire to reach, and it is what the local communities deserve.

1. Innovation - The first integral and sustainable approach to secondary education in rural Cambodia; the potential to transform secondary education models in developing countries worldwide.

2. Sustainability - Schools will become financially self-sustaining at year five in local communities through a diverse combination of revenue generation models; external capital is needed for seed and growth aspirations.

3. Direct Social Impact - Community-driven project creates ownership; holistic education, inclusive accessibility, sustainable model, comprehensive healthcare; draws from both private and public education concepts; positively impacting community and economic development.

4. Large Reach & Scope - Direct and indirect impact to over 100,000 community members for each school within five years; spill-over effect to public school system aims to transform exponentially, radiating the effect to developing communities across the globe.

5. Replicability - Replicable framework that utilizes partnerships and customizable local income generating activities; however, seed capital & human teacher training resources are required.


The Cambodia Project, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization.