Sahmakum Teang Tnaut: a Cambodian Urban NGO
Vision
A society in which urban inhabitants enjoy adequate housing within a sustainably developing city.
Mission
To provide pro-poor technical assistance for housing and infrastructure and to inform dialogue and raise awareness about urban issues
Background
Phnom Penh based Sahmakum Teang Tnaut (‘STT’) was set up in September 2005 and officially registered with the Ministry of Interior in December 2006. ‘Teang Tnaut’ means ‘Sugar Palm Leaf’ in Khmer and is used for house construction, thatch roofs, sugar and packaging. This icon of the Cambodian landscape evokes a simplicity and usefulness which STT tries to reflect in its work with urban communities.
From the outset STT has had a focus on infrastructure upgrading but over the past decade many communities have been impacted by development-related land alienation and evictions. Because of this STT has strengthened its research and advocacy to draw attention to a development policy that in Phnom Penh alone has led to 150,000 residents being displaced since 1990. By supporting genuine community complaints and grievances STT and its partners have been helping communities articulate their concerns to local and international media, donors and other NGOs & INGOs.
Programmes: STT works to achieve its mission through 2 main programmes
Programme 1: Technical
• Mapping, Infrastructure and Titling (MIT) : to work with communities to improve tenure security and physical infrastructure including tangible interventions such as clean water supply, sanitation, drainage, adequate road access and tenure documents as well as non-tangible interventions such as increased understanding of tenure issues and confidence to discuss with authorities and relevant partners .
• Alternative Housing & Urban Planning (AHUP): to provide alternative pro-poor options to urban development plans using a participatory approach.
• Technical Research: To produce accurate and well sourced data, surveys and mapping around urban issues that can be used as a reference point for communities, NGOs, donors, researchers and Government bodies.
Programme 2: Advocacy
• Community: to increase the ability of communities to articulate their concerns and to strengthen local community networks through meetings, forums, trainings and exchanges.
• Youth: to involve and inform both local and international students in housing and urban issues
• Media: to gather relevant information from communities, to prepare documents and reports and to disemminate information about housing issues affecting urban poor communities in a timely manner.
Donor support
STT’s operational budget for 2012 is approximately 150,000USD and its key donors are
• Open Society Foundations, MISEREOR, Norwegian People’s Aid & Heinrich Boll Foundation
