Gender Democracy in Cambodia
Photo by Ratana Pen
Introduction
As for other countries in Southeast Asia, the participation of Cambodian women both in political institutions as well as in non-formal bodies of political representation is limited. This male bias merges with a rural-urban divide that creates immense disadvantages for women in rural areas, who constitute the majority of the population. Therefore the Cambodia Gender program is formulated around two main objectives:
  • Contribute to the development of a gender discourse at the national level, in order to drive initiatives
    and shape a genuine national gender democracy perspective. This involves developing
    new research approaches in order to reveal gender biases and create a critical perspective.
  • Support rural women’s participation in politics through the development of grassroots forms of
     representation, and increase their capacity to push their own agenda for emancipation and improvement.

The Cambodia program aims at highlighting the intersection of gender with:

  • Ethnicity, as the target areas for rural women’s political participation in the Northeast of Cambodia
    are inhabited by several different indigenous groups;
  • Environment, as women are the primary actors in agriculture and play a key role in the management of natural resources.
News and Publications
Publication
Gender politics makes a difference: Experiences of the Heinrich Böll Foundation across the world

Cambodia - Pioneering work
The Heinrich Böll Foundation asked Cambodian women from very different spheres of life how they evaluated the situation of women in their country. There was a surprising amount of agreement between the ladies of the urban middle classes, rural women struggling with harsh circumstances, and Cambodian women working in NGOs who are fully familiar with their foreign promoters’ gender discourse. more»

Study

Action Research - Promoting Political Participation of Indigenous Women in Cambodia – To better understand and promote indigenous women’s participation in both traditional and formal political institutions, the Cambodia Country Office, together with GTZ, has launched an action research project. The study was conducted among indigenous communities in Ratanakiri, Mondulkiri, Stung Treng and among Khmer communities in Kratie. It points at both obstacles and opportunities to enhance indigenous women’s political participation. By Margherita Maffii and Hong Sineath, December 2009 more»

Study

Women's Perspectives: A Case Study of Systematic Land Registration in Cambodia – This study aims to identify emerging issues regarding women’s access to land in Cambodia while examining women’s participation in the process of systematic land registration.
By Mehrak Mehrvar, Chhay Kim Sore, My Sambath, 2008 more»

Video - part I
Video - part II