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Kobe Shoin Japan-Cambodia Project |
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The Kobe Shoin Japan-Cambodia Project was
established in 2002 to promote cultural exchange
between Cambodia and Japan amongst students
and to assist in educational projects amongst
the poor in Cambodia. Besides bringing a
young female Cambodian student to Kobe each
December as the winner of the Kobe Shoin
Japan-Cambodia English Essay Contest, the
project also supports the Women Development
Association, a Phnom Penh based NGO, in its
work of improving the living condition of
the poorest children. Most of these children
are waste pickers, living in the streets
and suffering bad health. The main objectives
of the programme we support are the integration
of poor children aged 3 to 5 years into pre-school,
and the successful completion of primary
education.
For further details, please contact Peter Mallett (peter @ shoin.ac.jp)
 Activity of Distribution of School Materials
to 22 WDA's target preschools
Supported by
Kobe Shoin Women's University
from Japan
in November 2007
Vannak KTO 2007
Photo Gallery
Event (Back Number)
Enjoy Fine Wines and Support
Children in
Cambodia
Estate Wines Japan is generously
supporting
our project by offering
us a commission on
all orders received through
this link:
Estate Wines Japan
(KSJCP Drink for Cambodia!)
Fine wines delivered to
your doorstep
Kobe Shoin Cambodia English Essay Contest
The contest provides an opportunity for a
young Cambodian woman to visit Japan,
including homestay with Japanese students,
sightseeing in Kobe and participation
in the annual University Speech Contest and
Christmas celebrations.
It is open to Cambodian women aged between
17 and 22 who have never traveled outside
Cambodia.
One winner is chosen each year from an English
essay contest of approximately 1000 words.
 The Seventh Kobe Shoin Cambodia English Essay
Contest was held this spring with the following title:
My generation's role in developing a Cambodian
society fair to all
It was won by Sovan Srun, who will visit
Japan in December.
Runners-up prizes of US$50 will be awarded
to:
Chakriya Chinh, Sakhena Pen, Ly Y Low
Sovan Srun's winning essay
 First Contest: Spring 2002
Title: My Dream for Cambodia
Winner: Sumana Bounchan
Visited Japan 7-20 December 2002
Second Contest: Spring 2003
Title:What Women Can Contribute to Cambodia's Future
Winner: Vannaksereyraksmey Var
Visited Japan 6-19 December 2003
Third Contest: Spring 2004
Title: What Is the Role of English as an International
Language in the Development of Cambodia?
Winner: Chanthou Sok
Visited Japan 3-17 December 2004
Fourth Contest: Spring 2005
Title: Those who dream make a difference
Either: show how your dreams could make a
difference to the future of Cambodia
Or: illustrate with examples from history
of people whose dreams have positively influenced
the development of Cambodia.
Winner: Souhong Tang
Visited Japan 2-17 December 2005
Fifth Contest: Spring 2006
Title: The Changing Position of Women in Cambodia
Show how the position of women in Cambodia
has changed from your mother's generation
and how you hope to further the opportunities
for the next generation.
Winner: Khemrin Min
-Visited Japan 8-26 December 2006
Runners-up: Sereykunthea San, Ratana Suon
and Yanvey Phou (Prizes of US $50 each).
Sixth Contest: Spring 2007
Title: Is there a place for educated women in Cambodian
society today?
Show how your education brings both benefits
and problems to you in the professional world.
Winner: Vannak Loeuk
Visited Japan 7-21 December 2007
Runners-up: Sokleap Ly, Yal Sovannora and
Sophea Yan (Prizes of US$50 each)
Kobe Shoin Japan-Cambodia Project News (2013)
Kobe Shoin Japan-Cambodia Project News (2011)
Kobe Shoin Japan-Cambodia Project News (2010)
A big 'Thank You' once again to all our supporters
during the past year. A successful year of
fund-raising enabled us to increase our donations
to educational projects in Cambodia, as well
as sponsor a Cambodian delegate at an international
summit and, as always, bring the winner of
the Kobe Shoin Cambodia Essay Contest to
Japan last December.
Our youngest supporter was 9-year-old Rosie
Dyke in Fife, Scotland, who asked children
coming to her party to give money to the
schools in Cambodia, rather than a present
to her. Students and staff at Kobe Shoin
have continued to bake and sell 'Cookies
for Cambodia', and the jazz band Take 5 once
again donated their time and talent for our
summer barbecue party. I also wish to thank
the Kobe Club for allowing us to hold this
party by their beautiful pool, and the Kobe
Global Charity Festival, still our biggest
sponsor.
Finally, thanks to the host families and
students for their warm hospitality to Vannak
Loeuk last December.
Fund-raising began this spring with an enjoyable
event in May kindly hosted by Ingrid Keith
and Paul Webb who had won a wine-tasting
for 20 people donated by Wolfgang Forster
of Estate Wines - IGM Ltd. All proceeds from
the ticket sales to this event were donated
to the project and Estate Wines added a percentage
from the wine orders taken that day. Our
most unusual source of funds so far also
resulted from this event: the proceeds from
the sale of Ingrid and Paul's bed in their
sayonara sale!
WDA Project
Due to forced slum clearances and development
in Phnom Penh the Women Development Association,
the Cambodian NGO we support, has shifted
the focus of its work to rural areas such
as Prey Veng Province.
This year we donated US$1,500 to the Women
Development Association to fund classes in
pre-schools in Prey Veng. Our money also
provided school uniforms for 171 children
starting primary schools and extra tables
and chairs and teaching materials for 22
different schools in the area.
Youth Summit in Siem Reap
The New York-based NGO Global Peace Initiative
of Women invited me to participate in their
Cambodian Young Leaders Summit 'Building
a Strong Cultural, Intellectual, and Spiritual
Foundation for the Future', held in Siem
Reap from 15-19 November 2007.
Forty Cambodian young leaders, selected for
their leadership potential, commitment and
vision for Cambodia, along with international
delegates from Vietnam, Taiwan, Sudan, Japan
and the United States attended the summit.
The KSJCP sponsored Raksmey Var, winner of
our second essay contest, as a Cambodian
delegate. The winner of last year's contest,
Vannak Loeuk, was also selected as a delegate
and separately sponsored. Kobe Shoin Women's
University funded my visit with Yuko Ota,
Kobe Shoin Student Ambassador 2007.
Delegates participated in discussions on
development, education, health, environment,
gender, human rights and on preserving traditional
Khmer culture. The youth leaders agreed that
peace was still fragile in Cambodia and that
they must focus on their future, while understanding
their past so as not make the same mistakes.
The summit resulted in the creation of Cambodian
Youth for Leadership. The mission of this
body is to empower youth to participate in
improving their country through education,
training and capacity building and, secondly,
to advocate for change through the dissemination
of information.
Dena Merriam, the founder and convener of
the Global Peace Initiative of Women, closed
the Summit, urging us "not to wait to
take action."
Field Trip to Prey Veng
Before travelling to Siem Reap for the Youth
Leaders Summit, Yuko Ota, Kobe Shoin Student
Ambassador 2007, and I spent some days in
Phnom Penh and visited the schools we support
in Prey Veng Province. Yuko writes below
of her experience:
I visited Cambodia for nine days in November
2007 as a student ambassador with Mr. Mallett.
Seven months have already passed since I
went to Cambodia; however, I remember my
experiences vividly. It was a very meaningful
trip for me.
During these nine days, I visited pre-schools
in the countryside, met the winner of the
essay contest, attended some classes at local
university, took part in Young Leader's Summit
and visited Angkor Wat, a great world heritage
site in Cambodia! There are so many things
to talk about, but now I would like to write
about visiting pre-schools, a day that I
especially remember.
The day after we arrived in Cambodia, we
went on a field trip to four pre-schools
in the countryside. The KSJCP supports these
schools through the WDA, a local NGO in Phnom
Penh. On the way to the schools I saw various
animals: dogs, chickens, pigs and we even
had a traffic jam due to a cow procession
on the road. After a two-and-a-half-hour
ride on the bumpy road by car, we took a
narrow path by motorbike. Finally we reached
the school. The school was totally different
from the one I went to in Japan. The school
building is made of palm trees and its leaves.
It looks very small and like a house (I think
it is actually a house!). When we visited
there, a lot of little children were studying
their own language, Khmer. They use plastic
desks and chairs. School materials like chair,
desk, notebook and textbook are not sufficient;
however they seem to enjoy their study.
I thought that it was natural to go to school;
I have never been worried about materials.
But it is not here. I hope more and more
Cambodian children can go to school. I would
like to help them through this project. And
I hope more and more Shoin students will
become interested in Cambodia and help with
this project.
Vannak Loeuk in Japan
Vannak Loeuk visited Japan from 8 to 21 December.
She is a 20-year-old student in her third
year in the Faculty of Odonto-stomatology
(Dentistry) of the University of Health Science
as well as an English BA student at the Institute
of Foreign Languages at the Royal University
of Phnom Penh,
She enjoyed the hospitality of homestay students
Naomi Ueda, Shiho Yamamoto and Yuko Ota,
took part in Christmas activities and classes
at Shoin - and experienced what it was like
to be cold for the first time!
Seventh Essay Contest
There were 22 contestants in the 7th Kobe
Shoin Cambodia Essay Contest held this spring.
The title was:
My generation's role in developing a
Cambodian society fair to all.
Once again, the contest was of a very high
standard and proved that Cambodia is blessed
with many highly educated, highly talented
and highly motivated young women who have
the potential to make changes for the better
for Cambodian society - if they are given
the chance.
Kobe Shoin Japan-Cambodia
Project News
No 5, Summer 2008
The winner, Sovan Srun, will visit Japan
from 5-20 December. Runners-up were Chakriya
Chinh, Sakhena Pen and Ly Y Low, who will
all receive prizes of US$50.
Sovan sent this self-introduction:
I am a second year student at the Institute
of Foreign Languages of the Royal University
of Phnom Penh, majoring in Bachelor of Education
in Teaching English as a Foreign Language
(BEd. TEFL). I also plan to take another
major in International Studies at the same
institute in the next academic year. Beside
school, I have been working as a volunteer
in the Initiatives of Change Association,
where I have helped in various projects such
as Stationary and Food Distribution, Youth
Camp, etc.
I am now living with my mum and younger brother
in the suburb of Phnom Penh city. My dad
died in an accident several years ago. My
mother is a cloth-retailer in a local market
while my brother is in his 8th grade at a
high school. My main hobbies are reading
books, specifically history, fictions, non-fictions.
Now I am also absorbed in reading manga as
well.
My future ambition is to work in any agency
of the United Nations. I hope to be a community
developer, working to improve the living
standard of vulnerable people in Cambodia.
Additionally, I would like to become an English
Language lecturer at my very own university.
The Next Step
As an extension of the KSJCP, Kobe Shoin
has given a grant this year for me to set
up a new project, the Kobe Shoin Institute
for Global Citizens, to develop our students'
social awareness. Our first activity, recently
held, was a Poster Presentation Contest on
global issues to choose this year’s Kobe
Shoin Student Ambassador. About 140 students
took part in this contest, with 17 in the
semi-final and 10 in the final on Sunday
20 July. Mai Nakahashi was chosen as winner
for her presentation on breast cancer and
will accompany me to Phnom Penh in September.
She will take classes with Cambodian students
at the Institute of Foreign Languages at
the Royal University of Phnom Penh and go
on a field trip to the WDA pre-schools we
support in Prey Veng Province.
In the autumn a series of lectures will be
held, open to the public (details below).
Forthcoming Events
Fund-raising events will continue in the
autumn with a further bake sale at Shoin
and a table at the Kobe Global Charity Festival
at the Kobe Club in Kitano-cho on Sunday
19 October. The highlight of the year's activities
will, of course, be the two week visit of
Sovan Srun in December.
Kobe Shoin Institute for Global Citizens
Lecture Series:
Wed 22 Oct, 2:40: Cambodia Now by Prof. Kanako
Shinkawa, author of book on health problems
in Cambodia
Wed 12 Nov, 2:40: Women's Education in Afghanistan
by Keiko Nishigaki who works for the Takarazuka
Afghanistan Friendship Association (TAFA)
Wed 26 Nov, 2:40: The situation in Burma
by Keiko Nakao who works for Burma Relief.
(All lectures are in Japanese)
Accounts: April 2007-March
2008
Income Yen
| Balance brought forward: |
375,760 |
| Interest (07) |
163 |
| Cookie sale |
18,200 |
| Donations |
52,000 |
| Kobe Club BBQ party |
108,000 |
| Global Charity Festival sales/donations |
12,000 |
| Global Charity Festival donation |
100,000 |
| Dinner concert |
33,000 |
| TOTAL: |
699,123 |
Expenses Yen
| WDA donation @US$1,500); |
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| special donations to schools @$200; |
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| flight ticket and insurance for Vannak @$745; |
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| Runners up prizes @$50 x3 =$150 |
|
| total: $2,595 = |
320,452 |
| TC exchange: $1 = \115.64 Commission @ 1% |
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| Currency exchange: $1 =\117.64 |
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| Vannak’s visit |
46,370 |
| Sponsorship of Raksmey
Var at Youth Leaders
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| Summit, Siem Reap @ $341 |
38,000 |
| TOTAL: |
404,822 |
BALANCE CARRIED FORWARD:
\294,301
(Detailed accounts are available on request.
Please note that all money raised is used
only to help Cambodians)
Further information: peter@shoin.ac.jp
ksw.shoin.ac.jp/~englang/cambojia.htm
Peter J Mallett
Kobe Shoin Japan-Cambodia Project co-ordinator
Peter J Mallett
peter @ shoin.ac.jp
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