Girl Guides Association of Cambodia
Encyclopedia
The Girl Guides Association of Cambodia (Khmer: ខេមរៈកាយារិទ្ធិនារី, Khemarak Kayarith Neary) is the national Guiding
organization of Cambodia
. It was founded in 1996 and became an associate member of the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts
in 2002. The association serves girls aged from seven to 18 years. Membership stood at 1,048 as of April, 2002.
. In the early 1950s, youth movements including the Guide and Scout Movements supported the country's religion, monarchy and community. However, all activities stopped under the Khmer Rouge regime. It was not until 1993 that suggestions were made to restart both Movements.
In 1993 a reception was held in Manila, Philippines in conjunction with the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts' Asia Pacific Symposium of NGOs for Women in Development
. The aim was to introduce or reintroduce the Girl Guiding/Girl Scouting movement and to explore possibilities of starting/restarting Girl Guiding/Girl Scouting in Cambodia, as well as Tibet
, Iran
, Russia
, Uzbekistan
and Vietnam
. Fifty women leaders from those nations attended the Asia Pacific Symposium, sharing their Girl Guiding/Girl Scouting experiences.
In 1996 a group of sixteen young university students was given some exposure to Guiding by a staff member of the WAGGGS-Asia Pacific Region
, a volunteer from France
and trainers from Thailand
and the Philippines
. However, it was not until 1998, with Leang MengHo's efforts and the support of WAGGGS' Asia Pacific Region, that the Girl Guides Association of Cambodia began to move forward. In August of that year, Cambodia received the WAGGGS Certificate of Country Working Towards Membership.
A quarterly newsletter is published in both the English and Khmer languages. The Girl Guides Association of Cambodia has a high profile in society and is well regarded, mainly due to the support of Queen mother Monineath
. Les Guides de France
have been working with and supporting the Association.
Girl Guides
A Guide, Girl Guide or Girl Scout is a member of a section of some Guiding organisations who is between the ages of 10 and 14. Age limits are different in each organisation. It is the female-centred equivalent of the Scouts. The term Girl Scout is used in the United States and several East Asian...
organization of Cambodia
Cambodia
Cambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...
. It was founded in 1996 and became an associate member of the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts
World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts
The World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts is a global association supporting the female-oriented and female-only Scouting organizations in 145 countries. It was established in 1928 and has its headquarters in London, England. It is the counterpart of the World Organization of the Scout...
in 2002. The association serves girls aged from seven to 18 years. Membership stood at 1,048 as of April, 2002.
History
Girl Guiding was introduced to Cambodia in the 1940s, when the country was under the French ProtectorateFrench Indochina
French Indochina was part of the French colonial empire in southeast Asia. A federation of the three Vietnamese regions, Tonkin , Annam , and Cochinchina , as well as Cambodia, was formed in 1887....
. In the early 1950s, youth movements including the Guide and Scout Movements supported the country's religion, monarchy and community. However, all activities stopped under the Khmer Rouge regime. It was not until 1993 that suggestions were made to restart both Movements.
In 1993 a reception was held in Manila, Philippines in conjunction with the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts' Asia Pacific Symposium of NGOs for Women in Development
Women in Development
Women in Development is an approach to development projects that emerged in the 1970s, calling for treatment of women's issues in development projects...
. The aim was to introduce or reintroduce the Girl Guiding/Girl Scouting movement and to explore possibilities of starting/restarting Girl Guiding/Girl Scouting in Cambodia, as well as Tibet
Tibet
Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...
, Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan , officially the Republic of Uzbekistan is a doubly landlocked country in Central Asia and one of the six independent Turkic states. It shares borders with Kazakhstan to the west and to the north, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to the east, and Afghanistan and Turkmenistan to the south....
and Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
. Fifty women leaders from those nations attended the Asia Pacific Symposium, sharing their Girl Guiding/Girl Scouting experiences.
In 1996 a group of sixteen young university students was given some exposure to Guiding by a staff member of the WAGGGS-Asia Pacific Region
WAGGGS-Asia Pacific Region
The WAGGGS-Asia Pacific Region is the divisional office of the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts, headquartered in Makati City, Philippines; Australia; and Japan...
, a volunteer from France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and trainers from Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
and the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
. However, it was not until 1998, with Leang MengHo's efforts and the support of WAGGGS' Asia Pacific Region, that the Girl Guides Association of Cambodia began to move forward. In August of that year, Cambodia received the WAGGGS Certificate of Country Working Towards Membership.
A quarterly newsletter is published in both the English and Khmer languages. The Girl Guides Association of Cambodia has a high profile in society and is well regarded, mainly due to the support of Queen mother Monineath
Norodom Monineath Sihanouk
Queen Mother Norodom Monineath was born on June 18, 1936, in Saigon, Vietnam. She is the wife of HM King Father Norodom Sihanouk of Cambodia whom she married in April 1952...
. Les Guides de France
Scouts et Guides de France
Scouts et Guides de France is the largest Scouting and Guiding association in France. It was formed on 1 September 2004 from the merger of two Roman Catholic Scouting organizations: the Guides de France and the Scouts de France...
have been working with and supporting the Association.