Cambodia Accelerates Next-Generation Talent Development with 21st Century Skills Education

For the past three years, UNICEF has collaborated with the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport to support and promote the 'Life Skills Education Program' and the 'Volunteering for My Community Program.' These initiatives have helped Cambodian children and youth acquire 21st-century skills, including critical thinking, problem-solving, communication, collaboration, creativity, and digital literacy, through a learning methodology focused on practical problem-solving. The 'Life Skills Education Program' specifically enables students to understand real-world community issues such as climate change, child marriage, online safety, and gender equality, and encourages them to develop practical solutions. According to the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport, as of December 2025, over 4,000 education officials and teachers have been trained to implement these programs. They have subsequently taught more than 429,000 students in 987 schools across 10 provinces, marking significant progress. Currently, the 'Life Skills Education Program' is a core subject within the national curriculum for grades 4 through 9. The 'Volunteering for My Community Program' is implemented as an extracurricular activity in secondary educational institutions, utilizing a project-based learning approach. These programs are contributing to the development of a new generation of confident, creative, and active citizens ready to contribute to Cambodia's future development.