Girls in rural Siem Reap have the right to safety, education and meaningful choices about their futures. Yet poverty, food insecurity, debt, limited services, gender discrimination, disability, family violence and unsafe migration pathways can restrict these rights. During financial or family stress, girls’ education and safety may be disrupted, increasing exposure to exploitation and trafficking.
Free To Shine will deliver a two-year, prevention project through its Cambodia-based team, in partnership with girls, families, public schools, local authorities and community service providers. The project will help school-aged girls stay connected to education, understand and exercise their rights, strengthen their safety and wellbeing, and participate in decisions affecting their lives.
A senior social worker will provide individualised support as circumstances change, including trauma-informed case management, safety planning, home and school visits, counselling, mentoring, education materials and transport, access to government social protection and health services, and referrals to local services.
The project will also build families’, teachers’, community leaders’ and local authorities’ capacity to identify child-protection concerns and respond early, safely and appropriately. Investment will sustain trusted relationships and practical support before challenges escalate – helping girls continue learning, stay connected to support and pursue futures of their choosing.
We aim to strengthen the protective environment around school-aged girls in rural Siem Reap so they can stay safe from exploitation and trafficking, continue their education, and have greater say in decisions affecting their lives. Over two years, the project will strengthen the people and systems that support girls: families, schools, communities, local authorities and relevant services.
We will know we are making progress when girls are safer, remain connected to learning, and are better able to recognise risks and seek support. We will also look for evidence that families can better prioritise girls’ safety, education and wellbeing during financial or family stress; community members and local leaders identify child-protection concerns earlier and respond safely and appropriately; and girls can access relevant support when they need it.
We will measure change through Free To Shine’s Child Status Index, regular case reviews, safety and wellbeing assessments, school-engagement information, service-referral records, and feedback from girls and families. Success will mean girls remain in education, families strengthen protective strategies and support networks, risks are addressed before harm escalates, and girls have more safety, support and genuine choices about their futures.
Free To Shine will use a child-safe, rights-based Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning approach to track delivery, understand change and improve practice. Data will come from case records, safety assessments, home and school visits, education information, referrals and case reviews.
Our Child Status Index will track changes in girls’ safety, wellbeing, education, family environment and access to support. This helps social workers identify risks early, adapt support and assess progress towards safer, more stable protective environments.
We will seek voluntary, age-appropriate feedback from girls, families, teachers, local partners and authorities. Findings will inform improvements, staff learning and future planning.
We will share aggregate results, practical lessons and carefully consented, de-identified stories through impact reports and supporter updates. We will never publish information that could identify a child or compromise their privacy or safety.
Free To Shine is an Australian-founded non-profit working in rural Cambodia to prevent girls’ trafficking and exploitation. Our vision is of educated girls, free from sex trafficking, shaping and leading their communities and country.
We use a child-protection-focused, human rights-based and gender-responsive approach to address conditions that increase girls’ vulnerability, including poverty, debt, food insecurity, unsafe migration, family separation, violence and barriers to education. We work alongside girls, families, public schools, local authorities and community leaders to prevent exploitation before it occurs.
Our work focuses on safe communities for children, educated girls and women in leadership. We provide safety visits, targeted social work and crisis support, and community training on safe migration, gender-based violence, gender equity and child protection. We help girls access and remain in public school through providing uniforms, learning materials, bicycles, curriculum support and help to overcome attendance barriers. We also invest in Cambodian women’s leadership through mentorship, leadership development and university scholarships.
Our Cambodia-based team works with government, schools and local providers to strengthen family and community systems so girls can stay safe, complete their education and pursue futures of their choosing.
