Poi Pet, a border-city in the northwest Cambodia, is drawing Cambodian migrants who are seeking employment either in Thailand or in Poi Pet. Many migrants come with their children, and are significantly vulnerable to unsafe migration and exploitation. Damnok Toek has been working in Poi Pet since 1999, with the mission to reach the most vulnerable children and families at risk. Nowadays, Damnok Toek offers a range of important services from day care facility, mobile library to family support, community outreach, and protection programmes; all under the facilitation of the Drop-In Centre.
Every weekday, the Drop-In Centre (DIC) opens the day care facility for children aged up to 16 years old. Damnok Toek welcomes any child to come and play, learn, and participate in recreational and educational activities, either as early childhood education or to help catching up on missed schooling. Others come just to be among other children in a safe place, where they are well taken care of by Damnok Toek’s team. In the first half of 2025, approximately 60 children are attending the DIC on a regular base. For those children capable, Damnok Toek facilitates for them to transfer to primary school classes or accelerated classes within Damnok Toek’s Non‑Formal Education programme or enrol directly into public schools. While the children are at the DIC, their parents can focus on making a livelihood, knowing their children are safe with Damnok Toek.
Children at the Day Care Facility are playing and learning with Damnok Toek’ s staff.
Kanha*, a 16‑year‑old girl who has made use of the day care facility since age six, tells: “I love it here because they give me study materials and food. The Damnok Toek staff are teaching me many subjects, and I can easily understand the lessons”. Currently, Kanha studies in Grade 5 at Damnok Toek’s Non-Formal Education programme. When Kanha is not at school or at the day care facility, she helps her family to sell vegetables for their daily living.
As part of Damnok Toek’s outreach programme in Poi Pet, the Mobile Library drives into communities twice a month, with a variety of books, learning games, and fun activities. This service is suitable for children who may not have books at home or for children who learn through creative activities. The Mobile Library provides a space outside classrooms for children to learn the importance of education, child rights, and risks of unsafe migration.
Community Children come to learn and read books from Damnok Toek’s Mobile Library.
Furthermore, Damnok Toek conducts weekday home and street visits across poor communities in Poi Pet; connecting with children and families living in vulnerable conditions. In the first half of 2025, approximately 40 children and their families have already received direct assistance through outreach services. Damnok Toek’s team shares useful information, provides counselling, and facilitates extra support to those families in need and at risk.
“We go out in teams to visit children at their homes and on the streets” says Chheng Ry, one of Damnok Toek’s outreach workers. He tells, that while he is doing outreach, he usually explains about the range of Damnok Toek’s services to children and their families, and talks with them about child protection and child rights. “When a family needs help; for instance, finding a job to make a living, we will step in and assist. We help them write job applications or connect them to job opportunities.”
Damnok Toek’s outreach team comes to work with children and their families who live in poor conditions.
These outreach visits are a way to quickly respond when a child or their family is in need of help. When suitable, the outreach teams collaborate with Damnok Toek’s Futures Office, also located in Poi Pet, to help parents from very low-income families to get training and empower them to find jobs and make a steady income. Some parents learn new skills like sewing or cooking, while others get help starting a small business.
As part of the outreach programme, Damnok Toek also runs community awareness sessions for parents and caregivers. Here they learn how to protect their children and understanding their rights. These sessions cover a range of topics like safe migration, child safety, and good parenting.
Another service provided by the Drop-In Centre (DIC) team, is training of ChildSafe Agents, such as motor-taxi drivers, shopkeepers and others, to look out for children who are in danger or in vulnerable situations. Currently, there are around 100 ChildSafe Agents affiliated with the DIC in Poi Pet city. When they see circumstances deemed wrong or abnormal for children’s safety, they, as well as anyone else, can call the ChildSafe Hotline (+855) 93 960 303 or (+855) 95 960 303, which is open 24/7. So far in 2025, the hotline has received nearly 300 calls from ChildSafe Agents and other community members.
The DIC team conducts a training for ChildSafe Agents.
Sous Sopheap, a primary public-school teacher, as well as a ChildSafe Agent with four years of experience, explains his motivation for being a ChildSafe Agent: “I wanted to help my community, because over the years I have witnessed cases of violence and accidents. Thus, it made me wanting to become a ChildSafe Agent”. He recalls one night when he encountered a child being victim of violence. He quickly called the hotline, and the local authorities immediately came and helped the victim. Like Sopheap, this group of regular community members are the eyes and ears to ensure child protection in their neighbourhoods.
Last but not less, the Drop-In Centre has a Peer Education programme for young people aged 16 years and above. The Peer Educators are trained by Damnok Toek to talk with community kids and teens at similar age about important topics like drug use, family problems, and life skills. Due to similar age, the young Peer Educators have a unique way of connecting and sharing information with other children and young people.
Damnok Toek offers a range of services to children and families who daily are facing tough situations in Poi Pet. Whether through education, counselling, income support, or child safety, the Drop-In Centre and its teams enable people to feel seen, supported, and safe. In every book shared, every smile given, and every help assisted, the DIC teams show that even small actions can make big difference to vulnerable children and their families
*The name has been changed in order to protect her identity
