Villageworks Songkhem Community Project

Villageworks Songkhem is an income-generating project supported by The Girls Brigade, Singapore for the people of Cambodia. The word SongKhem means hope in the Cambodian language. This project supports and trains socio-economically vulnerable groups based in the province of Kampong Thom such as women and people with disabilities.

The Villageworks Songkhem Center in Barai employs around fifty women from the local villages, and the profits from the sale of their products are reinvested into the growth of the organisation and the purchase of new equipment.  All the cotton used in Villageworks Songkhem products is woven at the Villageworks Songkhem center, along with the development of other artisan skills such as word carving and embroidery. Through these craft trainings, it is one of the aims of the project that aspects of Cambodian craft and traditional skills aspects of Cambodia life are perpetuated.

In an interview with the writer, producers of the center agreed that the assistance the center provides is more than financial but also encourages them encourage them to be creative. The additional income generated from these works help to improve the welfare and livelihood of these people.  We hope by promoting these product internally that the internationally community will begin to perceive in new era of peace for Cambodia and its children. This will make Cambodians proud to share part of their heritage with the world.

With Songkhem comes hope.

If you are visiting the Toul Sleng Centre or the Boddhi Tree Cafe you will find Songkhem retail outlet and office next door.