SIPAR

Sipar is a French NGO working towards the reconstruction of Cambodia through education of the youth. The NGO's mission is to fight illiteracy. The NGO employees 62 Cambodians in Phnom Penh, and French people with various volunteers and a Board in its French headquarters located in Versailles.

History
Sipar was created in 1982 with a goal of welcoming refugees victims of the Khmer Rouge regime. Sipar opened its first French classes at Phanat Nikhom camp in Thailand, where refugees were waiting for their departure for France. Sipar teachers taught the French language and culture to their students to better prepare them for their integration in France. In 1989, Sipar began working in sites on the Khmer-Thaï border to prepare the populations for their repatriation to Cambodia, after the Paris agreements.

From 1991, at the request of the Cambodian Ministry of Education, Sipar started to work in Cambodia. After 20 years of war, the country is shattered. Everything that had to do with knowledge has disappeared, the education system needs to be rebuilt.

Goals
Today, Sipar is committed to the most disadvantaged populations of Cambodia. Focused on the development of reading and education through access to books and the fight against illiteracy, the association operates in the 25 regions of Cambodia with a single objective: to make books a lever of education, to carry it and to make it accessible to the most underprivileged populations. With nearly 20% of cambodia's population unable to write, Sipar's programs help develop access to knowledge, education and help young people and adults progress on the path to knowledge.

Programs
Sipar has four main programs.

School libraries : To support the implementation of the national policy for school libraries at different levels of education. School libraries are complementary and indispensable resources to educational programs, strengthening students' learning and developing their curiosity and creativity.

Non formal education : To support the disadvantaged populations to help them develop the habit of reading, and promote access to books, information and education, which are essential for socio-economic development.

Youth empowerment : To support secondary school students and members of Community-Based Organizations (CBOs) located in villages in remote rural areas; and to improve their job prospects and help them become supportive actors for the education and social development of their communities.

Khmer book publishing : To contribute to the education of the Cambodian population by publishing for children, teachers, educators, and the general public a wide selection of quality books corresponding to their tastes and needs; by promoting reading to these populations; and by training in the various publishing professions.

Key Figures

 * 640 libraries or reading places in service
 * 14 Mobile Libraries (tuk-tuk library, van library, boat library...) are used to bring books to the poorest
 * 28 prison libraries
 * 20 collections of books in Khmer, 270 titles published and 3.2 millions copies since 2021
 * 380 000 direct beneficiaries