No magic wand to wave Mark Deasey reports on how partnership with Community Aid Abroad in Cambodia is benefiting an isolated Cambodian community. Kimseng shouted to a group of young women transplanting rice seedlings in the pouring rain.
Wet rice is a demanding crop.
Once the seedlings have been uprooted, there's only a narrow window of time to plant them out if they are to catch the full benefit of the rainy season. The work goes from dawn till dark until completion. Despite the urgency of the work in hand, there was a good showing of both men and women come to share their views on what the village needed, and to discuss how Community Aid Abroad might help. The huge stream is cut into a maze of channels by forest-clad islands, of which Koh Kroch is one. The village meeting shows another side to isolation.