Cambodia's tourism ministry will work with an international NGO to help protect children from foreign pedophiles. Cambodia's Ministry of Tourism has signed a deal with international aid group World Vision to combat child sex tourism as the country steps up efforts to woo foreign tourists. The ministry inked a memorandum of understanding with World Vision at a ceremony in Phnom Penh on Wednesday, strengthening the cooperation the two sides have had since in preventing the sexual exploitation of children in Cambodia's tourist industry, a top money spinner.
Cambodia is noted as a haven for foreign pedophiles and the government has beefed up enforcement to check the problem.
The partnership between the tourism ministry and World Vision aims to enhance capacity-building for relevant government officials and strengthen mechanisms at national level so as to prevent child sex abuse in the tourism sector, Minister of Tourism Thong Kon said.
World Vision will work with officials to raise awareness of the vulnerabilities of at-risk children and promote responsible tourism practices through education, training, and public campaigns. The partnership forms part of a U.
Hor Sarun, who also chairs the ministry's Committee for Safe Children in Tourism, said the panel will collect information, investigate suspects, and report cases to anti-human trafficking and juvenile protection agencies.
