Siem Reap, KH – Dream does come true – May 2023
Cambodia has been deeply marked by years of war. Over the past 6 years since we started our program, poverty in the villages has decreased, but inequalities still continue. Thirty-five per cent of the population lives below the poverty line, surviving on less than 1 dollar a day.
Families in the village often do not have adequate skills and secure access to a regular income. This means that many parents have very little capacity to provide even basic needs like education to their children, or decent and secure housing. Housing and education critically intersect in the lives of low income families. Without the skills to secure a job, all family members including children will end up having to find ways to help parents find food, this means that owning a house becomes a less important thing for the families.
This deprives children of their basic need for a safe and secure home. The future of the community lies in the hands of the next generation, so it is very important to produce a secure productive generation in the future, children are the assets of the community. In the village we no not have health services or pensions for the old people, so we expect the children to take care of their elderly parents in the future.
To attain this, a safe living environment needs to be established, so Peaksneng Shop and Better Lives has been assisting disadvantaged families to own a home with a Rent-to-Own ( RTO ) home program. We do this because we believe that a home influences children development. A home should be a safe place for playing and nurturing social and emotional development, it is where important interaction happens with parents, siblings, friends and others in the community.
This is why Mr. Chereap and his family rejoiced following completion of their RTO home. This month Rey the manager of Peaksneng Shop offically presented the family with their RTO rental agreement, and they moved into their home. They will own the house and its 24m x 25m lot of land after regularly paying the rent for 15 years.
Cheareap said “I know Rey and team for almost 10 years and was following all what they have done in the community, and now it’s my turn to rent a Rent-to-Own house for my children, I cannot believe my eyes that this dream is coming true. Patience and positive attitude will bring your dream to come true, thank you to Better Lives, Peaksneng Shop and and Rey to make so much change to the lives of people in the community”. “My dream is to see my children successful in the school. They see how hard I work for them.”
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