Promoting Literacy in Southeast Asia: SIPAR Helps Cambodian Children Discover the Joys of Reading

Cambodia is a monarchical country in Southeast Asia with a population of approximately fifteen million, and the country has faced an enormous amount of internal adversity throughout history. The country struggled to achieve independence from a near one hundred-year rule by France, and after much hardship and war, the country gained independence in 1953. After the end of the Vietnam War in 1975, Cambodia faced debilitating drought that destroyed much of the agriculture and led to famine across the country. The Khmer Rouge regime quickly rose to power and attempted to rebuild Cambodia based on Communist China under Mao Zedong, forcing workers into rural areas and eliminating Western medical advancements. It is estimated that anywhere from one to three million Cambodians were killed under the Khmer Rouge regime due to executions, starvation, or disease. Cambodia was then occupied by Vietnam, and was not granted independence until 1993. Considering Cambodia’s difficult colonial past, it is no surprise that the country struggles with literacy and access to reading material, and the Soutien à Initiative Privée pour l’Aide à la Reconstruction des pays du sud-est asiatique (SIPAR) is dedicated to providing children with access to books and reading programs throughout Cambodia.

SIPAR has been working to promote literacy in Cambodia through reading and library programs for thirty years. Based in Versailles, France, the organization was developed in 1982 to aid Southeast Asian refugees in Cambodia, and since then has provided Cambodian readers across the country with school libraries, public reading centers, and several children’s books published in Khmer, the official language of Cambodia. During Cambodia’s rehabilitation and development process in 1991, SIPAR contributed to educational advancement by prioritizing literacy and encouraging children and young adults to understand the world around them through literature. The project is conducted by a team of thirty-five Cambodians and works under the firm belief that the key to a successful future, both for young people and for the nation as a whole, is literacy. A major step in combating poverty and illiteracy is universal education, and SIPAR is driven to enshrine literacy and love for reading in the Cambodian education system.

SIPAR organizes activities in four main programs: the School Library Program, the Reading for All Program, Communal Educational Services Development, and publishing books in Khmer. Through the efforts of the School Library Program team, and in collaboration with the Ministry of Education and Youth and Sport of Cambodia, SIPAR has been successful in developing 230 primary school libraries in twenty-four provinces across the country. These libraries provide a quiet place to strengthen literacy skills, and stimulate an early interest in reading. By creating an environment where children feel comfortable and encouraged to explore literary possibilities, SIPAR has worked to make reading a fun and exciting experience in children’s lives. Because many children in Cambodian schools have access to very few textbooks and learning materials, these libraries play a crucial role in childhood literary development, and provide young people with opportunities to expand their learning experiences outside of the classroom.

While the school libraries benefit children’s education immensely, the positive influence of the program extends further than children in the classroom. The libraries have provided stable employment to 2000 people as trained librarians, and have sparked a substantial amount of career interest in the field of librarianship. SIPAR’s library programs have also trained 120,000 teachers in librarianship and information studies, and offer extensive training to prospective librarians in terms of establishing connections with young readers and promoting books as a means of leisure and enjoyment. By combating illiteracy in young people, SIPAR is working to prevent poverty in Cambodia’s future by promoting education, and in turn, employability, and the job opportunities that the program creates also work toward its goal of prosperity.

The Reading for All Program, developed in 2000...