Education & Poverty Reduction Program
There are various NGOs in Cambodia and majority of them aren’t sustainable; therefore, they can only supply short-term provisions, subsidies and training. This causes the local community to lack trust and become increasingly anxious and insecure about these organizations. The Agricultural Livelihood Centre aims to build community spirit and improve vocational training in product harvest and sales. Which enables projects to operate sustainably and strengthen the trust of the community thereby establishing strong relations. 
Vocational Training Center
1. Cambodian Women’s Handicraft Workshop: In April 2018, the mothers of the participants in Cambodian Children Sponsorship Program were recruited to participate in a three-month women’s workshop. A village teacher was invited to teach traditional Cambodian weaving techniques. This involved using palm leaves and valerian to make coasters, table mats, bags and various other goods. The initial training stage of the course involved 30 women.
2. English Classes: In 2017, Formosa Budding Hope Organization had discontinued 9 English classes in the village due to financial problems and remoteness of the rural communities. Since they were located far from the city center many teachers were unable to arrive punctually. Eventually, it became hard to find unemployed teachers that were willing to make the commute into the outskirts of the city.
In April 2018, the English classes were renewed for another term. After much observation, the FBHO was able to conclude that in the Siem Reap tourism region it was beneficial to be bilingual and English speakers earned more. Therefore, the English classes were reintroduced to the students. In order to overcome the issues with finding suitable teachers and venue, the Formosa Budding Hope Organization developed their own campus and enlisted the help of the Cambodian employees in the Siem Reap office. The classes take place from 8am-9am and 1pm-2pm every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. There are approximately 50 students that participate.
Medical Center
1. FBHO Sponsors Trip: Formosa Budding Hope Organization held the Sponsors Trip for both parties to meet in Cambodia and invited the sponsors to bring their friends to participate. A total of 9 sponsors met with 20 children. They participated in the FBHO’s Community Service Program and provided children with boiled eggs and rice. They also took part in field trips to Angkor Wat. The close interaction between the sponsors and children allowed the kids to immerse themselves the compassion and support of the Taiwanese sponsors. Giving the sponsors the opportunity to personally take care of the children gave them a clearer idea of the service plan and activities. This meeting also made way for the students of Taipei Municipal Jianguo High School and the Angkor High School to take part in scientific experiments together as well as experience each other’s school life and various cultural activities.
2. Cambodian Family Farms’ Mushroom Program: The Mushroom Program began in 2012 because the Formosa Budding Hope Organization had observed the working style of women in the local community. They wanted to give these women the opportunity to work and provide extra income for their families. Therefore, the purpose of this program was to educate and instill life skills in local women. In addition to stabilizing the families’ financial situations, they also established the women’s position in their homes. Therefore, the local children could go to school and learn without worrying about earning for their families too.
The initial planning and start-up phase of this project took place from 2012 to 2014. The plan became more stable as the technical components gradually matured and were adapted from 2015 to 2016. The number of mushroom farmers trained by the Formosa Budding Hope Organization has increased; initially there were 8 family farms supported by this and this has increased to 25. In the first phase, new families can get 200 mushroom compost bags free of cost. They are also provided with some subsidies and technical guidance on how to grow the oyster mushrooms. The second phase gives households (if they can afford it) the opportunity to purchase compost bags from Formosa Budding Hope Organization.
In recent years, they have been evaluated by FBHO and the old households who are returning participants can purchase 500-600 bags of mushroom compost and use it to kick start the growth of oyster mushrooms. Eventually, they will be able to sell these mushrooms and earn an additional US$60-70. In 2017, a total of 3 training sessions were conducted, producing 12,000 bags of mushroom compost. Only one training session was conducted in 2018, producing 4,000 bags of mushroom compost. The local community strongly believed that they should be given mushroom compost bags for free but the FBHO refused to provide these bags for family farms who didn’t attend training sessions. The main intention was that the local community would obtain new skills and use this technology to provide for their families, instead of relying on free resources. Thus the local community could build their independence and become self-reliant. Formosa Budding Hope Organization suspended the program after the first training and began to formulate new response measures in hopes to improve the program and achieve substantial benefits for the local community to reap.
Phnom Penh Library - Chinese Class
In the capital of Cambodia, Phnom Penh, a large number of Chinese companies and factories have been set up and the demand for Chinese language speakers is rapidly growing. Formosa Budding Hope Organization acknowledged this growing demand as an income opportunity for the local community and thus, a library and Chinese classes were set up in Phnom Penh. Through this, the heirs of Taiwanese businessmen and Cambodian students who want to learn a second language have a friendly learning environment. Due to financial problems and low attendance rate of students, the project was terminated after the end of the first semester of Chinese classes. When there will be a stable foundation and a plethora of teachers in Phnom Penh, the project may be reconsidered.
Oral Health Program
Dr. Huang, a dentist and one of our medical mission founders, noticed the oral cavity diseases could not be cured in short-term clinic visits and limited medical treatments. To improve dental conditions, people need to develop reasonable oral hygiene routine daily. This oral health program was initiated to train local teachers in order to educate students on teeth brushing habits.
