According to bank's website, the approved project aims to improve access to and quality of Early Childhood Education (ECE) in some of Cambodia's most vulnerable districts. The project supports the Royal Government of Cambodia's efforts to expand equitable and inclusive ECE services and leverages technology and play-based pedagogy to strengthen learning outcomes for young children.The project targets 60 preschools across seven rural and underserved districts in the provinces of Battambang, Pailin, and Banteay Meanchey. These areas face persistent challenges in ECE provision, including limited access to services, inadequate infrastructure, and gaps in teacher capacity. The operation will benefit approximately 9,500 individuals, including 3,100 children aged 3-5, 200 preschool teachers and principals, and 6,200 parents and caregivers.The project is structured around three interlinked components:Component 1: Enhancing quality of ECE service delivery through teacher training and parental engagement. This component will strengthen teacher capacity through in-service training, beginning with Training of Trainers (ToT) for district education officers and resource school teachers. The training will cover play-based learning methods and digital literacy. The project will also establish an Early Childhood Education Digital Resource Platform, integrated with the national platforms, to support ongoing professional development. Parental engagement will be enhanced through targeted communication campaigns and home learning resources.Component 2: Expand access to quality Early Childhood Education. To reduce barriers to access, the project will improve the physical learning environment through the construction of 20 new preschool buildings and renovation of 40 existing classrooms. These facilities will be equipped with essential teaching and learning materials, child-friendly furniture, and digital tools. Additionally, the project will pilot a targeted school meals program in seven resource preschools to support child nutrition and attendance.Component 3: Strengthening Project Management, Monitoring, and Evaluation. This component will finance project coordination, financial management, procurement, and safeguards oversight. It will also support the development of a monitoring and evaluation system to track implementation progress, measure outcomes, and generate lessons learned. Planned activities include annual audits, knowledge-sharing outputs, and the preparation of an Implementation Completion Report (ICR).

Environmental and Social Risk: M

Total Project Cost: US$ 0.00 million

Commitment Amount: US$ 4.73 million 

Task Team Leader: Lauri Pynnonen 

Title: Senior Education Specialist 

Email: lpynnonen@worldbank.org 

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