Life After Cambodian Test Build
September 5th, 2011
Kem Sabet And Family Look Forward To Future After Three Years Of Living At Phnom Penh Dumpsite
Kem Sabet (second from right) with her son Sochichhay, daughter Davy, grand-daughter and husband Long Sambath inside their house.
In November, volunteers for the Khmer Harvest Build will have the opportunity to work on a farm.
OUDONG, 5th September 2011: It has been over a month since Kem Sabet and her family moved into a house which was completed in a test build for a forthcoming Habitat for Humanity Cambodia project.
After three years of living in a bamboo stilt house near a municipal dumpsite in the capital Phnom Penh, Sabet’s new home is everything she wishes for.
Referring to her old house, Sabet said” “We were always afraid that either the wind would blow the house down or it would just collapse on its own.
“The new house is safe, comfortable and can help to earn money for my family,” she said. Sabet, her husband, Long Sambath , their son, Sochichhay, and their granddaughter moved into their Habitat home in mid-July.
Sabet and her husband are raising 20 ducklings in a pen which they built outside their new house, in Oudong in Kandal province, about 45 km. from Phnom Penh.
The clean air and neighbors’ friendliness are also strong draws. “We were accepted here very quickly,” Sabet said of the 28 families who already live in the community.
Sabet’s 24-year-old daughter Davy, who works at a garment factory, said: “I no longer think about living at the dumpsite because it was very hard on my family. That is in the past. I look to the future and that makes me happy.” Davy and her husband currently live and work in Phnom Penh while Sabet takes care of their young daughter in Oudong.
Come November, 22 families who share life circumstances with Sabet, will have an opportunity to build new homes and a better life in Oudong.
From 15th to 19th November, more than 300 international and local volunteers will work together with the families to build decent and affordable housing.
During the build, volunteers can also experience working on a 2.4-hectare farmland which is developed by Habitat in partnership with Australian non-profit organization International Children’s Care.
The farmland will help to increase livelihood opportunities for Habitat home partners.
Volunteers for the Khmer Harvest Build stand to win a free trip if they donate a minimum of US100 or if they sign up to donate US20 monthly over one year. Visit HFH Cambodia’s website for more information.