The commune/sangkat elections in 2002 and 2007 marked a significant step forward in Cambodia’s democratic decentralisation process. Decentralisation is the most deep-cutting public sector reform and the politically most important democratic development in Cambodia. The reform rearranges power structures, creates space for a more pluralistic political representation, addresses gender equality in local politics, and triggers articulation of new opinions. However, reforms continue to face significant challenges: female representation in political decision-making bodies remains inadequate, gendered articulation of ideas and priorities […]

This research project represents the first baseline socioeconomic survey that CDRI has conducted for the Greater Mekong Sub-region Transmission Project of Asian Development Bank. The study was designed to develop a set of comprehensive baseline demographic, social and economic as well as energy consumption indicators for the project. The tools for data collection were village and household surveys in 27 villages, of which 17 villages are potentially project beneficiaries (treatment group) and 10 are non-beneficiaries (control group). It then used […]

International labour migration can be characterised in three ways – as human aspiration, tradition, and necessity. For some people, working overseas is a dream. For others, international labour mobility is a tradition. For a great number of people however, international labour migration is an economic necessity. It is the only viable solution to realise their basic human right to a decent life. GMS worker movements to Thailand typify all three characterisations of international labour mobility. While this book focuses on […]