Since the closure of the dump in Stung Meanchey in 2009 the people who worked as scavengers have had to move on and find other things to employ themselves with. The government effectively baned them from the new dump several mile outside of Phnom Penh so they could not follow the garbage.
Phymena Noun, Executive Director with PIO, tells me that many have continued to live in the Stung Mean Chey area of Phnom Penh and are still picking garbage but on the street before the trucks get to it. Many can be seen pushing their little trolleys around the city, full of cans, bottles and plastics.I supect, but have no confirmation of this, that a few of the children will have gone into the begging trade. The kids at the PIO school continue to attend and their is no shortage of kids that would like to be able to join them but PIO can only offer so much due to limited resource. There are many children working and begging on the Riverfront a main haunt of tourist and more affluent Cambodians. I would like to find out more about what they have been doing since the closure of the dump and will be working over the next few months to discover the answer to this question.
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