About Kamboo Project

Vision

Cambodians work together to meet the basic needs of children.

Mission Statement

We combine donations and voluntary work with a dedicated team in Cambodia to help children learn in a safe environment. We leverage our extensive knowledge of local needs and build effective collaborations with teachers, parents and communities to achieve sustainable impact.

Who we are

We were founded in September 2014 as a Swiss non-profit association. Since then we have been realizing projects in the province of Siem Reap, Cambodia, and here exclusively in rural districts. In addition to this clear geographical focus, we limit our activities to three core areas in which we can have the most impact: drinking water and sanitation, sustainable building and renovation, and education. Kamboo Project follows the principle of “helping people to help themselves” – with our projects we help local people to improve their living conditions themselves in the medium to long term. Our development took place in several phases. In the beginning, we learned in smaller projects how much you can achieve on site with just a few resources if you integrate and support local know-how in a targeted manner. In January 2017, the board of the association was significantly strengthened with experienced, honorary members. Through our teamwork and improved fundraising, we took the opportunity to expand and professionalize our local organization in Cambodia. As a sign of this further development, we have renamed ourselves and have been called the Kamboo Project since 2018 (the association was originally called «United Asia Charity»). Legal form: association / tax status: eligible for deduction from income tax / State-licensed NGO of Cambodia

Executive Board in Switzerland and in Cambodia

Our organization and governance consist of two parts that complement each other. We manage project strategy, fundraising, administration and use of funding and donations, information technology, legal, finance and audit from Switzerland (headquarter: Zurich). Our operational center, including project management, liaison with authorities and voluntary work, is located in Siem Reap, Cambodia. Accounting and controlling are strictly implemented locally.

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Thomas Gilbert (President)

(*1971, Swiss & German), teacher and trained scientist. Head of our Finance Committee and Co-Head of our Projects & Programmes Committee. Quote:"Material aid is one gratifying aspect. The magic of giving back the smile to an elderly lady or a student an even greater good. There is nothing quite like my time spent with Kamboo Project in Cambodia."

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Kim Thurnherr (Vice President/IT manager)

(*1992, Swiss), Chief Technology Officer, Head of IT and Member of Kamboo Project’s Finance Committee and Co-Head of our Marketing, Communication & Media committee. Founder of KDT-Solutions. Quote: "With drive and efficiency you can achive a lot which gives you a a great feeling."

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Stephan Lienin (Executive Board)

(*1970, Swiss), Ph.D, education in natural science at ETH Zurich, co-founder of Sustainserv (2001), a consulting company in Zurich and Boston focused on sustainability. 20 years of experience in sustainability strategy, implementation, and communication. Co-heads our Marketing, Communication & Media committee and is a member of our Projects & Programmes committee.

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Stefan Pfister (Executive Board )

(*1968, Swiss), pastor of the Evangelical Methodist Church Langenthal (since August 2023), regularly travelled to Cambodia for 10 years on behalf of the church. Actively involved in the project management of Kamboo-Project.

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Somalita Keo (Executive Board )

(*1987, Cambodian). MBA, Country Manager of Kamboo Project in Cambodia. Somalita has a proven background in financial management, with ten years on-the-ground experience of the Cambodian NGO sector.

Team Cambodia

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Somalita Keo (Country Manager)

(*1987, Cambodian). MBA, Country Manager of Kamboo Project in Cambodia. Somalita has a proven background in financial management, with ten years on-the-ground experience of the Cambodian NGO sector.

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Somnang Pin (Fundraising Officer)

(*2000, Cambodia). Somnang earned her bachelor degree in Tourism and Hospitality Management. She joined Kamboo Project as an intern in 2019 and became permanent staff in 2021 as a Public Relations Manager. Since August 2022 she took on responsibility as a Fundraising Officer.

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Sreyphat Loun (Account Assistant)

(*1999, Cambodian). SreyPhat earned her bachelor degree in November 2021. Her subject is Tourism and Hospitality Management. She began an internship at Kamboo Project in April 2022 and became accounting assistant in May 2022. "I pledge to work tirelessly to help the struggling communities", SreyPhat says.

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Kimlong Hout (Project Officer)

(*2000, Cambodian). Kimlong earned his bachelor degree in Tourism and Hospitality Management. Before joining Kamboo Project, he worked as an intern with an NGO in Siem Reap, KamPuchea Action, to promote their educational programmes. In late 2021, he joined Kamboo Project as Junior Project Officer and subsequently became Junior Public Relation Officer in January 2022. His responsibilities are building positive relationships with stakeholders, media and the public and also assisting the country manager and the project team.

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Laoh Loeur (Project Officer)

(*1998, Cambodian). Bachelor degree in TESO (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) from Paññāsāstra University of Cambodia PUCSR. Laoh joined Kamboo Project as Junior Project Officer in February 2022.

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Phary Dung (Intern)

(*2003, Cambodian). "I graduated from high school in 2020, and now I am studying at Build Bright University (Information Technology) in year one. Working at Kamboo Project Organization since 01 February 2022 as an intern, I want to try my best on assisting to and learning from the seniors of the NGO."