Meet Joseph, Data Management Operator in Nairobi
Joseph helped digitize business records as part of a municipal egov project
Africa’s Silicon Valley becoming a reality
Africa’s Silicon Valley is becoming a reality, reports Kenya’s Capital FM Business.
The Thoughtful Chenda Chhay: DDD Grad, Entrepreneur & UN Staffer
If her grandmother hadn’t needed an operation, Chenda Chhay might have grown up as a subsistence farmer in Pursat province. Her family, after surviving the horrors of the Khmer Rouge, arrived to Phnom Penh in 1981 to see a doctor. They stayed, and their move was the first in a series of events that changed the trajectory of Chenda’s life. A year after arriving in a city still recovering from devastation, the family’s second child was born. They named her Chenda, the Khmer word for “thoughtful,” perfectly suited for a bright inquisitive baby.
The People I Met
This is a guest post written by Geoff Benjamin. Geoff is a consultant for DDD who recently participated in our board meeting in Cambodia. The story below is an account of his experiences in the country.
Staff Profile: Chaiphet
Women in Laos generally experience a lower standard of living than men and suffer from gender disparities. They tend to work more, earn less, carry the primary responsibility for securing food for the family, and are scarcely recognized for their efforts. Fewer girls than boys are enrolled in school, and the proportion falls steadily as the level of education increases. You help us change this by supporting DDD.
Going Local
The majority of DDD’s business—more than 85%–comes from clients in the US and Europe. Importing demand and dollars from abroad contributes to economic growth in the countries in which we work. But as Cambodia and Laos grow, we are starting to see a shift toward more demand for DDD’s services in the local market.
Battambang, Cambodia – Rice Paddies and IT hub?
When you walk around town, you’ll pass by grand colonial buildings and soon find yourself walking on a dirt road lined with small houses, mainly constructed from bamboo and thatched with palm leaves. At the same time, you’re just as likely to walk past IT and Communications colleges and glossy facades of international businesses.
The Weight of Young Responsibility
When describing the importance of the work that DDD does, one of the observations we’ve returned to several times here on the blog, is how the young Khmer and Lao people we have employed are characterized by working and studying hard. They take the opportunity and their responsibility very seriously at a young age.
Leadership In The Making
About six months ago, DDD was looking for a Senior Project Manager, someone who could take responsibility for all of the data-entry and digitization projects running in DDD’s largest office in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
Humbled
This spring, we piloted a ‘Home Visits’ program, aimed to familiarize our non-Asia-based staff with the reality of our employees in Cambodia and Laos.
