Urgent appeal to prevent school aged girls in Siem Reap province Cambodia being trafficked into the sex industry

HIGHLIGHTS

Between July 2025 and June 2026, an estimated 60 school aged girls at high risk of being trafficked into the sex industry in Siem Reap Province, Cambodia will require urgent support. Girls in Siem Reap Province are at heightened risk as a result of the rise of predatory microfinance, climate change related impacts on agriculture, increased financial stress as a result of delayed recovery from the pandemic, and cuts to international aid by major economies, which has resulted in parents not being able to afford schooling for their children, and the migration of parents to secure income, leaving children left behind highly vulnerable to traffickers. Without adequate and timely financial support, Free To Shine will not be able to meet the overwhelming needs of 60 girls, their families and communities in Siem Reap Province, Cambodia.
Free To Shine is working with local authorities in Siem Reap Province to identify girls most at risk of sex trafficking. Demand for our services is exceeding current capacity and staff are working to a full caseload. This urgent appeal supports the provision of essential material aid and funds that school aged girls need to access and stay in school by providing access to clean water, healthy sustainable nutrition and addressing their support needs. This results in increased safety and lower vulnerability to sex trafficking, as being in school means a girl is integrated into a formal network of support, is regularly accounted for by a professional, and the likelihood of her and her family being approached by a sex trafficker is reduced.

For just $47,047 AUD Free To Shine will be able to directly support 60¹ school aged girls and an estimated 174 family members^2,in 30 communities in Siem Reap Province. Specifically, funding will support 400 safety visits³ by two Education Officers in 2025-2026 and delivery of 60 water filters, 300 packets of seeds, additional curriculum classes for 60 girls, 60 sets of school uniforms, 60 sets of school supplies and 60 bikes⁴.

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Your donations impact

Of $47,047 AUD, 52% will go toward program costs, 40% toward staffing costs and just 8% toward operational costs, ensuring the maximum number of school aged girls can be supported.

For just $29 AUD you can provide a family with access to clean drinking water for two years.
For just $35 AUD you can supply a family with vegetable seeds and protective nets to grow their own food.
For just $105 AUD you can gift a girl with a bike to ride to school, ensuring she can travel to school safely.
For just $158 AUD you can provide emergency food relief for a family in need.
For just $792 you can provide emergency food relief to five families facing hardship.

To make a donation, click here.

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Sex trafficking in Cambodia context

School aged girls and young women in Siem Reap Province are more vulnerable to sex traffickers than in Cambodia as a whole - Siem Reap Province has higher levels of inequality, child stunting as a result of inadequate nutrition and lower levels of educational attainment among women when compared to the national average⁵. The rise of predatory microfinance has led to many families in Siem Reap Province being forced to repay loans at exorbitant interest rates. Climate change has contributed to farmers migrating to nearby countries to secure enough income for their families. When combined, this results in significantly heightened risk for young girls and women in Siem Reap Province to being sex trafficked.
Domestic financial stress and cuts to international aid by major economies is increasing the vulnerability of Cambodian girls and young women to sex traffickers - The rising cost of living and delayed recovery from the pandemic has put increased stress on Cambodian households. Internationally, the pandemic led many in Australia and other developed countries to focus on very real problems at home rather than supporting causes abroad, but now, with recent cuts to international aid by major economies the future funding environment is looking even more uncertain. Increased sophistication by traffickers, particularly through online channels is also putting young Cambodian girls and women at heightened risk.
Sex trafficking is largely clandestine in Cambodia - Cambodian and ethnic Vietnamese women and girls move from rural areas to cities and tourist destinations, where criminals exploit them in sex trafficking in brothels and, more frequently, clandestine sex establishments at beer gardens, massage parlors, salons, karaoke bars, retail spaces, and non-commercial sites. According to the latest statistics in 2023, 142 victims or potential victims of trafficking as well as 214 victims of forced marriage were identified, and 436 individuals were referred to NGO shelters for reintegration support services⁶. ‍
Children left behind by families migrating abroad for work are particularly vulnerable to sex trafficking and forced labor - Due to increased financial stress many parents migrate to different provinces, or to nearby countries to raise enough funds for their family, leaving their children vulnerable to traffickers. Traffickers in Cambodia are most commonly family or community members or small networks of independent brokers⁷. Cambodian men form the largest source of demand for children exploited in sex trafficking; however, men from elsewhere travel to Cambodia to engage in extraterritorial child sexual exploitation and abuse, increasingly facilitated through social media contact⁸.

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Free To Shine Strategy

In line with Free To Shine’s mission to “prevent the trafficking and exploitation of girls, by strengthening family and community systems to prioritise the safety and education of their children” and specifically the goal area of Educated Girls, the program strategy of this appeal is built around providing the essential material aid and funds that school aged girls need to access their local state school, and to keep girls in school by providing access to clean water, healthy sustainable nutrition and addressing their wraparound support needs. This results in increased safety and lower vulnerability to sex trafficking, as being in school means a girl is integrated into a formal network of support, is regularly accounted for by a professional, and the likelihood of her and her family being approached by a sex trafficker is reduced. Out-of-school girls in rural communities with low levels of education are easy targets for traffickers to manipulate, because they are more likely to accept false promises of work.

Free To Shine is working with local authorities in Siem Reap Province to identify those girls most at risk of sex trafficking. The demand for our services is exceeding current capacity and staff are working to a full caseload. Between 2025 and 2026, this appeal will support an estimated 60 school aged girls at high risk of being trafficked into the sex industry in Siem Reap Province through providing urgent support including material aid to address human right deprivations related to clean water, healthy nutrition and facilitate their engagement in education.

Free To Shine is well placed to deliver on this program as is evidenced by our impact to date which includes an estimated: 27,107 safety visits conducted to vulnerable Cambodian girls and their families, provision of 684 water filters to ensure Siem Reap households have access to safe drinking water, distributed 3,009 school supplies and uniforms to school aged girls, supported 120 additional curriculum classes, provided 1,691 packets of seeds to ensure girls and their families have adequate nutrition, provided 1,126 bicycles to ensure girls have transport to school, supported 209 girls to complete grade 9, supported 213 girls to complete year 12, enrolled 740 girls onto our program, provided 2,030 people with emergency food relief and established 55 community village partnerships.

STORY FROM THE FIELD

Chhinh*, Grade 6 student

Chhinh lives with her parents and three younger sisters. Her father, the sole income earner, is a construction worker, but his income is unstable. Recently, her mother gave birth to a new baby and stays home to care for the children and manage household responsibilities. The family faces significant financial challenges, which led to Chhinh being enrolled in our program after risks were identified during the initial assessment.

Despite her circumstances, Chhinh has shown resilience. While she sometimes struggles with self-motivation due to family hardships and poverty, she consistently performs well at school, earning good grades, displaying strong ethics, and working diligently. Recognizing her potential and vulnerability, Chanda, her Education Officer provided encouragement and counseling, motivating Chhinh to maintain her focus on her studies and engaging her parents to ensure they actively supported their children’s education.

In addition to emotional support, material support was provided including a bicycle, baby clothes for the newborn sibling, school uniforms, school supplies and vegetable seeds and nets so her family could establish a garden, helping to improve their finances and nutrition.

Today, Chhinh is thriving. Her academic performance has improved, and her family is more engaged in supporting her education. Both Chanda and the Free To Shine team are proud to see the positive changes in Chhinh’s life and her family’s outlook on education.

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Funding requirements in 2025-2026

In this appeal, Free To Shine is seeking to raise $47,047 AUD to address the immediate needs of 60 school aged girls in Siem Reap Province including urgent actions to uphold school aged girls rights to nutrition, clean water and education.
The threat of trafficking faced by school aged girls across Siem Reap Province are urgent and are increasing each year. Caused by many pressing factors, notably increased microfinance debt levels in Siem Reap Province, the escalating impact of climate change related natural disasters, the delayed economic recovery from the pandemic, cuts to international aid by major economies, increased migration of parents of girls to nearby countries in search of income and increased sophistication of traffickers in the use of online technology.
Support for this appeal will empower Free To Shine to guarantee the work of two Education Officers for the 2025-2026 financial year ensuring an estimated 60 school aged girls at high risk of being trafficked into the sex industry in Siem Reap Province are protected. It will enable the provision of critical material aid to address deprivations related to water, food and education. Investment in this appeal will also support an estimated 174 family members of these school aged girls, reaching 234 people overall.

Without adequate and timely financial support, Free To Shine will not be able to meet the overwhelming needs of 60 girls, their families and communities in Siem Reap Province, Cambodia.

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To make a donation, click here

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View full appeal here

* Names and personal details of children in this report have been de-identified to protect privacy

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Sources:

Calculated on existing case loads of two Education Officers
Calculated at average household size of 3.9 multiplied by 60 individuals = 234 (household size derived from Average household size - Table - Demographics - Global Data Lab)
Safety visits per EO a month average (based on Cheat Data in Impact Number Track spreadsheet) * 2 EO's being applied for = 54 safety visits per month, multiplied by 10 months = 540 safety visits overall
Based on February Monthly Program Report
Global Data Lab
2024 Trafficking in Persons Report: Cambodia, U.S. Department of State, https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/cambodia/
2024 Trafficking in Persons Report: Cambodia, U.S. Department of State, https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/cambodia/
2024 Trafficking in Persons Report: Cambodia, U.S. Department of State, https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/cambodia/

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