A tropical storm, on top of the regular rainy season, caused extreme flooding in Cambodia earlier this month.

The hardest-hit areas were the northwest provinces, where many already feel the economic effects of COVID-19 due to restricted border trade and lack of tourism.

While most floodwaters have started to recede, some areas remain high due to dams opening in Thailand. Besides the immediate effects of flooding on infrastructure and livelihoods, thousands of hectares of rice crops were destroyed.

We have received reports from local Alliance churches and local partners in the countryside and have provided $15,000 for relief aid to the Khmer Evangelical Church (KEC), the C&MA national church in Cambodia. 

The KEC President, Rev. Ruom Chamroeun, reports they will assist 470 of the most vulnerable church members and community members with emergency food aid. In January, a third of the funds will be used to provide over 250 farmers with rice seed for their planting season.

CAMA workers, who served in Cambodia for over 20 years, partner closely with locally-run projects and local leaders in the northwest province. They also partner with Alliance aXcess worker, David Manfred, and his team who serve alongside the KEC.

If you would like to help, please give to the CAMA Disaster Relief Fund. We are also looking into how we can respond to help our partners and Alliance family in Vietnam, a country battered by widespread flooding throughout October.

Watch a quick update from David Manfred in Cambodia.