Cambodian Journalists Alliance Association

Opinion

An SUV and several other cars parked on a sidewalk in Phnom Penh, blocking a clearly marked pedestrian lane on August 21, 2022. (Quinn Libson)

Op-Ed: Phnom Penh Needs a Long-term, Grassroots Strategy to Transform Sidewalks

A chaotic mix of automobiles, motorcycles, and Tuk Tuks greet you right as you step outside. The overwhelming sounds of vehicles roaring, horns honking, and people shouting combine to create a cacophony. If you want to stay off the road, you’re forced to navigate parked SUVs and motos blocking your way along what sliver of a sidewalk is available. At times, there is no walkway whatsoever and the only option is to maneuver through the snarled traffic.
An SUV and several other cars parked on a sidewalk in Phnom Penh, blocking a clearly marked pedestrian lane on August 21, 2022. (Quinn Libson)

Op-Ed: Phnom Penh Needs a Long-term, Grassroots Strategy to Transform Sidewalks

A chaotic mix of automobiles, motorcycles, and Tuk Tuks greet you right as you step outside. The overwhelming sounds of vehicles roaring, horns honking, and people shouting combine to create a cacophony. If you want to stay off the road, you’re forced to navigate parked SUVs and motos blocking your way along what sliver of a sidewalk is available. At times, there is no walkway whatsoever and the only option is to maneuver through the snarled traffic.
Families spending time at the riverfront in Phnom Penh, July 8, 2024. (CamboJA/Pring Samrang)

Op-Ed: Reassessing Household Dynamics and National Policies for Gender Equality

When we talk about a Cambodian family or household, we tend to make assumptions about specific roles—mother, father, son, daughter—and the duties associated with these roles. For instance, we see a father as the sole breadwinner of the family. We traditionally see a mother as the caretaker, who manages the household as well as takes care of the children. 
An Indigenous women walks back from farming in the Veun Sai district of Ratanakiri province on October 29, 2023. (CamboJA/Try Thaney)

Op-Ed: Indigenous Communities Lose Land at Perilous Rate Due to Predatory Loan Industry

A microfinance credit officer in Ratanakiri recently told me he thought Cambodia’s Indigenous communities would be landless in the next 10 years, as they sell off their land to pay off loans. His worrying prediction comes in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, when financial instability pushed even more people in the country to take on debt. Many local community members, including Indigenous communities, have borrowed money from banks and microfinance institutions to buy land, pay for medical expenses, build houses, fund farms, carry out religious ceremonies and pay school tuition. But many of these communities are struggling to pay back their debt.
Jong-Jin Kim, Assistant Director-General and Regional Representative, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)

Op-Ed: Women’s Work: Time to Recognize Their Critical Role in Agriculture – And Invest in It

Despite women's significant contributions to our agrifood systems in the Asia-Pacific region, women continue to face persistent obstacles, including limited access to resources, services, and discriminatory practices all along the food value chain. As we gather to celebrate this year’s International Women's Day (IWD), it is time for action, to fully recognize women's indispensable role in the fields, in the factories, and those running small and medium-sized companies, associations and cooperatives – all of which produce the nutritious food we eat each day.