What INSP!Ring happened in Cambodia in 2022? Mainstreaming knowledge on social security

The development of the social protection system in Cambodia has progressed rapidly in the last decade, especially since the Royal Government of Cambodia approved and implemented the "National Social Protection Policy Framework 2016-2025". This policy document is a long-term roadmap of the Government to lead the implementation of the social protection policy in Cambodia under the common vision of ensuring citizen's income security, reducing and preventing poverty, vulnerability and social inequality, as well as contributing to the wider development of human resources, including promoting sustainable national economic growth. To develop the social protection system and to ensure better harmonization of the different strategies, policies and other social protection activities, the Royal Government has established the “National Social Protection Council” (NSPC). The NSPC is the key actor responsible for the overall coordination and steering on the development of various social protection strategies and policies. 

The National Social Security Fund or NSSF consists of 3 schemes: Occupational Risks Scheme (2008), Health Care (2016), Pension (2022). The Law on Social Security Schemes, which dates from 2019, also foresees the development of an unemployment benefit scheme. Until 2021, 17.355 companies had registered in NSSF, with a total number of 4.335.501 members: 2.723.837 men and 1.633.583 women. 

Before 2017 WSM has also worked with the Cambodian Labour Confederation (CLC) and its main federation C.CAWDU, which is organizing the workers in the garment industries of Cambodia. While contacts with CLC have remained between 2017 and 2022, as they were also part of the continental network on the right to social protection in Asia, WSM has decided to return to Cambodia to put up a program with CLC to mainstream and increase the knowledge of union leaders and workers in factories on the national social security system. In the past, actions were quite focussed on further developing the NSSF, through advocacy by CLC to the Cambodian government. This time the goal is to ensure that within the organization of CLC knowledge and expertise on social security is more widely shared, also at the local levels of the organization, as well in the federations organizing the formal as the informal sectors. By the end of 2026 1.725 union leaders, members and workers should have an in-depth knowledge on the Cambodian social security system and have the ability to raise awareness and advocacy for better policies on social security. 

Aside from that, CLC keeps on pushing for increasing the coverage of the NSSF to an additional 300.000 workers (of which 60.000 in the informal sectors) and for improving the quality of the existing system, in particular the health care scheme and the occupational risks scheme. The union propagates that all Cambodian workers should be able to have health insurance and that it should similarly be available to their family members. At the same time the quality if the health facilities should improve and more diseases should be covered by the health insurance. CLC also advocates for the new pension scheme to apply to all Cambodian workers and for the creation of an unemployment benefits scheme.

Some results of SP4ALL, the Cambodian INSP!R network... 

National level:  CLC decided to join in 2023 SP4ALL (Social Protection for All), a platform to raise awareness on social protection and reduce citizen's concerns to the duty bearers, that was established by Oxfam and partners. The Oxfam – project, which runs to January 2024, has the objective to ensure a more inclusive, rights-based and shock-responsive social protection system. By promoting the active participation and consultation of Cambodian civil society organisations (CSOs), the project will contribute to building trust and cooperation between rights holders and duty bearers. The project intends to reach approximately 1.750.000 individuals, comprising of formal and informal economic workers (street vendors, market sellers, domestic workers, waste collectors, tuk-tuk driver, service workers, construction workers, farmers), people with disabilities, elderly people, women and children and ID poor households who are prone to risks and economic shocks.