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Caring for community during COVID‑19
‘Thanks to the support of our Friends in Faith and Cambodia Mission Partners (two of our regular giving programs), families received bags of rice and other staples monthly to help cover their food needs.’
In Battambang, Cambodia, Catholic Mission is empowering people with disabilities to lead fulfilling lives.
During last year’s COVID‑19 lockdowns, we worked with rural communities in Cambodia to provide emergency relief and food support to people most in need. In all, forty families received 25kg of rice per month to help cover their food needs, and over one hundred more families received a sanitary and food package. Medical supplies were sent to 74 families.
Catholic Mission’s Outreach Program works to restore the dignity of People with Disabilities (PwDs) and to promote social‑inclusion, self‑sustainability, and the integration of PwDs and their families into their local community.
Through the dedicated work and support provided by team members in Cambodia, the Outreach Program has enabled local families to start businesses. In the communities of Prey Thom and Otanhea, a total of forty hectares of rice were grown. Each family in Prey Thom also received 19 chickens.
In the communities of Rattanak Mondol and Koomreang, more than sixty families were provided support to grow cassava for harvesting.
One of the participants impacted by the Outreach Program is Chantou San. As a landmine survivor, Chantou received support from the Outreach Program and the Arrupe Centre in the form of education, accommodation, and access to healthcare services.
After completing high school, Chantou studied accounting with the support of the Salesian Sisters of Don Bosco, at a residential vocational training centre and the Outreach Program’s scholarship program. She returned to train with the Outreach team after she finished her course and became a staff member.
“I like my work here because I want to help people like me the way Outreach used to help me. I am very proud of myself when I visit and deliver support for them,” says Chantou.
Catholic Mission is grateful for the support of programs like this not only empowering people with disabilities but providing life‑saving care to communities in need during COVID‑19.
For more information about the amazing mission programs like this in Cambodia, please visit
catholicmission.org.au/cambodia •
Learn more about how we are working with local communities
