Savy, 14 years old, was born in Takeo province as a single child to a family of modest means. When she was 7, her parents came to Banteay Meanchey province in search of employment opportunities and took her with them. Savy had to leave her primary school in Takeo after completing grade 2 and was enrolled in grade 1 in a public school in Poipet when her family migrated there. When Savy’s father – who was diagnosed with diabetes when she was 5 years old – became seriously ill, Savy had to drop out of first grade to help her mother with household chores whilst she took care of her father who could barely move, let alone work. For years, the mother – now working as a cleaner in Phsaar Kandal market in Poipet – had been the sole breadwinner of the family. Every day, when Savy returned home from school, she would have to take care of her father, whose condition deteriorated daily, and perform house duties to alleviate her mother’s burden.
As a consequence of the hardships that her family was facing, Savy had been forced to drop out of primary school countless times between 2016 and 2018. When her mother found out about Damnok Toek’s Non-Formal Education Center in Poipet from a neighbor, she asked for her child to be enrolled at the NFE. After conducting a thorough family assessment of Savy’s family’s living conditions, income, and situation, DT’s social workers concluded that the child is indeed eligible to attend the NFE.
Savy enrolled once again in first grade but never had to repeat a year again. With her determination and diligence, she became an outstanding student and succeeded in her end-of-year examinations in 6th grade at the NFE in November 2023. Now she attends 7th grade at a public Ou Chrov Secondary School. Nothing can give her a bigger thrill!
‘Even during COVID-19, Damnok Toek found a way to reach us – students at the NFE – by coming to our houses and letting us learn using digital tablets. I found this very helpful and was very glad to be able to continue studying online when all the schools in the country were closed. It kept me motivated and I couldn’t wait to return to school!’, says Savy.
The enrollment of Savy at the NFE is also a big relief for her parents, who would not be able to afford their daughter’s education without Damnok Toek’s support: the school materials, the school uniform, and shoes, as well as the free school meals, are all costly expenses which many families from disadvantaged backgrounds in the Poipet area cannot cover.
In July 2021, as the rainy season raged over Cambodia, a windstorm caused severe damage to Savy’s house, forcing her and her parents to seek temporary shelter with the neighbors. In this dire and exceptional situation, Damnok Toek provided emergency food support (food packages containing rice and essential cooking ingredients) and construction materials (zinc, metal sheets, pillars) to repair the house for a total amount of 115$.
Savy’s family house was eventually rebuilt in March 2022, her parents are very happy and relieved to have a house of their own again and encourage Savy to continue studying and to complete grade 6.
Like many other young girls across Cambodia, Savy has endured many hardships and setbacks in her young years but fought to continue her education journey, demonstrating extraordinary resilience.
“I am very grateful to Damnok Toek for providing me with school supplies and emergency food support for my family in times of need. Without the NFE, I would not have been able to stay in school and finish grade 6, because of how difficult my family situation is. I am determined to continue to study hard to get the skills I need to help my family in the future. My dream in the future is to become a teacher and I will work hard to achieve this goal”, says Savy.
