Phnom Penh, June 1, 2015 — The Asia Foundation’s Books for Asia program on May 29 presented books to a newly-established library of the Cambodia-Korea Cooperation Centre (CKCC), at the request of Korea International Development Agency (KOICA) in Cambodia. Founded in 2013 with support from KOICA, CKCC is a center for high-quality human resources development and aims to strengthen mutual relations between Cambodia and Korea, located at the Royal University of Phnom Penh.
“As an extension of a growing partnership, The Asia Foundation is proud to contribute books to the library of the Cambodia-Korea Cooperation Centre or (CKCC), a considerable achievement from KOICA in its own right,” said Dr. Gordon Hein, senior vice president of programs at The Asia Foundation.
“The Asia Foundation also believes in the power of education and recognizes that knowledge transforms lives.”
The CKCC library currently houses more than 5,000 books from various Korean organizations. The Foundation hopes to incrementally add books to the library and become a long-term partner and resource to help CKCC fulfill its dream of 20,000 books. The current donation focuses on topics such as management, business, and technology donated by John Wiley & Sons, a leading global publisher.
“We understand and agree with the meaning of Books for Asia, which is aimed at expanding reading opportunities for individuals and communities, thereby empowering future and current Asian leaders and infusing young students with a love for reading. KOICA shares this purpose in Cambodia, as one of our priority areas for development cooperation with Cambodia includes education and human resources development,” Ms. Baek Sook Hee, Representative, KOICA Cambodia.
The Books for Asia program is one of the longest-running programs of The Asia Foundation in Cambodia, which started in 1955 and resumed its operations again from 1993. In Cambodia, Books for Asia has typically delivered about 40,000 brand new books donated by American publishers annually to more than one hundred recipient institutions including governmental institutions and ministries, universities, secondary schools, and non-government organizations (NGOs), reaching an estimated hundred thousand individual beneficiaries across Cambodia. Since 2014, Books for Asia has partnered with Kampuchean Action for Primary Education (KAPE) to focus on increasing access books at the secondary school level.
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