This paper broadly assesses some reasons why co‐management of inland fisheries by resource users and state agencies in Cambodia remains difficult to realize. Our survey of the resources, human capacity and associated de facto mechanisms for achieving community fisheries (CFi) objectives among fishing communities of Krakor District, located along Tonle Sap Lake, found these mobilizations at a crossroads in terms of empowered institutional and legal frameworks. Although the commune is a local administrative authority in the context of Cambodia's evolving decentralization and deconcentration (D&D) reform process, decision making and accountability in natural resource management have yet to be transferred to, or opened to participation from, local and subcommune level stakeholders and agencies. Furthermore, the institutional links between the commune council and CFi are ambiguous. This lack of linkages between central government, state agencies and CFi has left fisherfolk struggling to survive against more powerful competing interests. The preliminary findings presented here suggest that the achievement of sustainable CFi management in the Tonle Sap Lake remains problematic without local level decision making powers, sustained funding of CFi and related local government, and partnership between key shareholders in rural development programmes that recognize and encompass women's roles in natural resource management.
Climate change is unequivocal. Farmers are increasingly vulnerable to floods and drought. In this article, the negative impact of climate hazards on rice cultivation in the Tonle Sap and Mekong River influenced by climatic variability between 1994 and 2018 are analyzed. A cohort of 536 households from four Cambodian districts participated in household surveys designed to consider how various vulnerability factors interacted across this time series. It was found that: (i) The major climate hazards affecting rice production between 1994 and 2018 were frequent and extreme flood and drought events cause by rainfall variability; (ii) In 2018, extreme flood and drought occurred in the same rice cultivation cycle. The impact caused by each hazard across each region were similar; (3) An empirical model was used to demonstrate that drought events tend to limit access to irrigation, impact rice production, and result in an increased prevalence of water-borne diseases. Flood events cause reduced rice production, damage to housing, and impede children from accessing education. The impact of drought events on rice production was found to be more severe than flood events; however, each climatic hazard caused physical, economic, social, and environmental vulnerabilities. It is recommended that sufficient human and financial resources are distributed to local authorities to implement adaptation measures that prepare rice farmers for flood and drought events and promote equitable access to water resources.
A rapid spread of the COVID-19 outbreak has recently shifted teaching and learning at higher education institutions (HEIs) worldwide from the traditional classroom to the online process. During the educational disruption, online teaching and learning have become an alternative to pursue education. This paper aims to analyze the antecedents and consequences of students’ study commitment at Cambodia’s HEIs during the COVID-19 pandemic. The research focused upon: adaptation of online teaching and learning, consequences and antecedents of students’ study commitment to online learning, and factors influencing students’ willingness to participate in online learning during the post–COVID-19 pandemic. The research was primarily based on an online survey among 1002 undergraduate students at Cambodia’s largest and oldest University for quantitative data. The SPSS 25 and AMOS 23 were adopted to proceed with the data analysis, especially in Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). We found that: (1) two stages of online teaching and learning processes were adopted at the Royal University of Phnom Penh (RUPP): individually-managed and institutionally-managed processes; (2) the students’ study commitment played an active role in improving their learning satisfaction. Meanwhile, academic support is one of the most outstanding factors influencing students’ online learning; and (3) in the post–COVID pandemic, 81.4% of undergraduate students did not propose to continue online learning. The survey confirms that online learning significantly reduced their academic performance, and 62.3% claimed online teaching negatively affected their studies. A prediction reveals that gender, the effect of online learning, permanent address, and home WIFI connection influence the students’ willingness to take online education in the post–COVID-19 pandemic. The findings of this research have advanced knowledge of students’ study commitment and provided scientific evidence for practitioners, planners, policymakers, and researchers to promote online teaching and learning at Cambodia’s HEIs during the post–COVID-19 pandemic.
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