In Cambodia, twenty years protecting children and opening up their futures
AVEC takes in, educates and supports vulnerable children and young adults in Cambodia, from the shelter in Battambang all the way to university.
Twenty years of measurable action
A continuous presence in Battambang, a local field team, accounts audited every year. Here is what AVEC means in concrete terms in 2025.
20 years
In Cambodia
Since 2005, we have protected children from abuse and exploitation. First bring them to safety, then open the school door to them. Our weapon against poverty is education.
26 children
Under our protection
Twenty-six girls and boys live in our shelter, the children’s island. A team of Cambodian women is by their side day after day, from the first night of safety to the university benches.
400 students
At the training centre
English and computing, free of charge, for young people from the rice fields of Battambang, with no age limit.
95,9 %
Go straight to the field
Of every donation, 95,9 % funds the shelter, the school and the centre. The remaining 4,1 % covers running costs, and our accounts are audited every year in Switzerland.
One path among many
Sreyneat came to the shelter unable to read
Today, Sreyneat is a qualified nurse, top of her year, and she is training to become a midwife. She studies while already working in a rural clinic. She has written a book about her life. When her studies are over, she will spread her wings. In the meantime, she is a great help to us: she is the one who watches over the health of the children at the shelter, and for them she remains living proof that it can be done. Sreyneat is not an exception; she is one path among dozens built over twenty years in Battambang.
None of these steps held without someone to walk alongside her over the long term. Protect, put through school, train, send to university: that is what a sponsorship makes possible, patiently, just as it was for her. For another child, you could be the name at the foot of this story.
Six programmes, one single mission: breaking the spiral of poverty
From kindergarten to university, AVEC supports every step. Here are three of our six programmes in Battambang.
26 children taken in and protected
The Battambang shelter
Here, children hurt by life find a roof again, hot meals, school and a listening ear. Brothers and sisters always grow up together here.
Standing on your own two feet
A trade, a second chance
Two free courses under one roof: sewing and beauty for young women and mothers with no means, English and computing for children from the countryside. For each of them, a door to a brighter future.
The woman who changes a village
One woman at university, and everything changes
In rural Cambodia, one young woman with a degree, and a whole family changes course. AVEC gives her a safe shelter and funds her studies through to graduation. Sponsoring a student changes a life, for good.
Become a sponsor, commit for the long term
Five sponsorship formats. From the shelter to university. You choose where your commitment counts most. One single ethical rule: children under protection are never named; only consenting adult students are.
Shelter
from 30 CHF / month
26 children taken in
Students
from 50 CHF / month
Named, from A-levels to graduation
Training
from 40 CHF / month
1 454 course enrolments in 2025
Kindergarten
from 25 CHF / month
The youngest ones taken in
Schoolchild
from 35 CHF / month
Full schooling
You can stop at any time. Donations are tax-deductible in Switzerland and France.
Not ready for a long-term commitment? A one-off donation counts too
A one-off donation funds a specific project or answers an emergency. You choose the amount, you receive your tax receipt, you stay free. Many of our sponsors started with a one-off donation.
Switzerland and France each have their own recognised association. Choose yours to benefit from the local tax deduction.
Why you can trust us
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95,9 % to the field
Every franc raised funds the programmes in Battambang directly. The remaining 4,1 % covers auditing, banking and legal administration.
✓
Annual audits
Both of our associations (Switzerland and France) have their accounts audited every year. Public reports available to download.
✓
Not a single day closed
On 24 December 2025, three fighter jets flew over the shelter; the explosions followed. That evening, like every other, the meals were served. In twenty years, not a single day closed.
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Public benefit
The Swiss AVEC association is exempt from tax on public-benefit grounds; the French association is recognised as being of general interest. Donations are deductible in both countries.
Another way to get involved
Three ways to give your time
AVEC does not live on donations alone. Three programmes welcome people who want to contribute in other ways. The Sentinelles go out into the field in Battambang. The Voix d’AVEC carry the cause across French- and German-speaking Switzerland. The Relais d’AVEC act from a distance, from their own homes.
You do not need to be an expert to join. All it takes is some time and the willingness.
