United Nations Population Funds (UNFPA) provides 4,880 dignity kits to assist the Royal Government of Cambodia support vulnerable women and girls affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and recent flooding caused by tropical storms in Cambodia.

“The COVID19 pandemic compounded by recent flooding has exposed women and girls to various risks and vulnerabilities, and as UNFPA, we believe that the provision of integrated sexual and reproductive health services including GBV prevention and response in addition to mental health and psychosocial support is the more pressing and critical now, noted Daniel Alemu, UNFPA Representative a.i. “We trust that these dignity kits will provide temporary relief to thousands of women and girls, but we call for governments and partners to increase their investment to ensure that no woman is left behind during these challenging times and the long-term recovery efforts from the pandemic”.

The Dignity Kits will be distributed to vulnerable female migrant returnees, particularly pregnant women and victims of Gender-Based Violence, vulnerable women and girls affected by flooding, and vulnerable female inmates especially pregnant women in prisons. With this support, UNFPA has provided over 1,000 dignity kits to the National Committee for Combat Trafficking (NCCT) at the Ministry of Interior, 1,100 dignity kits to the Ministry of Women Affairs, and 600 Dignity kits to the Reproductive Health Association of Cambodia (RHAC). UNFPA is also providing 163 Dignity Kits to the General Department of Prisons of the Ministry of Interior to distribute to vulnerable female prisoners.

Additional 1,000 dignity kits will be provided to the National Maternal and Child Health Centre (NMCHC) of the Ministry of Health to help vulnerable mothers and pregnant women in response to the COVID-19 pandemic in UNFPA priority provinces.

To support natural disaster and flood relief efforts, UNFPA provided 1,000 dignity kits to the National Committee for Disaster Management (NCDM) to support vulnerable families, especially women and pregnant women affected by the floods. 

Essential materials such as basic hygiene items as well as information on COVID-19 prevention that women and girls, especially during seasonal flooding victims, need are included in the kits. The communication and information materials contain advice for pregnant and lactating women and young girls to help protect themselves against COVID-19, tips for coping with stress at home, and necessary information on GBV/VAW response services during the pandemic.

Since June 2020, UNFPA has provided 6,550 dignity kits for crisis preparedness and response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the floods in Cambodia. 3,600 Dignity kits were procured under the United Nations COVID-19 Response and Recovery Multi-Partner Trust Fund and 2,950 Dignity Kits through UNFPA Core Fund.