The goal of the Village Hive Project is to dismantle the root causes of poverty, raise the standard of living for entire communities and eliminate dependence on charity.
The Village Hive is a public social protection system, run by local communities, that prioritises prevention and early intervention.
The Mission
We are working to establish one Village Hive per commune per year in Battambang District. With ten communes and 62 villages in Battambang District, we are set to complete the Village Hive Project by 2032. The first Village Hive was established in 2022 in Ou Char Commune. In 2023, the second Village Hive was established in Svay Pao Commune.
The ultimate aim is to create a scalable blueprint to reimagine charity and prove it’s possible to empower communities to transform their own world.
The Village Hive is built on a three-tiered, upstream model of social protection that untangles the complex, interwoven dimensions of poverty. It prioritises Universal Prevention and Early Intervention to ultimately prevent people from falling into crisis and therefore reduces the demand for costly crisis services.
The Village Hive is being built through collaborative co-creation with each commune and on a foundation of anti-corruption frameworks.
Since 2007, we have been delivering essential social services in Battambang District for a population of over 100,000 people. The services we have been delivering – such as health, education, housing, employment, and social support – are essential for realising fundamental human rights. However, delivering these services indefinitely on behalf of the local council in Battambang District is not sustainable or empowering.
The Village Hive is being built through collaborative co-creation with each commune. All the services we have been operating privately and the institutional knowledge developed over 16 years are being integrated into the public sector. Our staff are being transferred to join the public sector workforce, and we are investing in the professional development of the public health, education and social services workforce.
A longitudinal study is being conducted across the entire lifespan of the Village Hive Project to create an evidence base that will support the Cambodian Government in scaling into other districts across Cambodia. After 2032, we will no longer need to deliver essential social services in Battambang District.
