Global Financial Crisis:
The Rapid Response Alliance (RRA) in Cambodia

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The Rapid Response Alliance | Increased Vulnerabilty | RRA Activities

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Increased Vulnerability

Since the release of the research findings in the SIREN Report Effects of the Global Financial Crisis on Women's Working Conditions and Opportunities, a program was enacted in Cambodia to assist those left vulnerable by the worldwide economic downturn.

There are approximately 400,000 workers directly employed by the garment industry, with approximately 2 million Cambodian citizens dependent on the industry.

UNIAP's research found some striking indicators of increased vulnerability:

• in the first five months of 2009 exports to the US dropped by 22%
• since September 2008 approximately 50 factories have closed down
• estimates put the number of workers fired in this timeframe at 60,000

Studies have indicated an influx of women into entertainment establishments over this time period. This includes massage parlors, karaoke, beer gardens, where transitory sexual relations are commonly negotiated.

The Rapid Response Alliance's (RRA) focus has been on this largely female population of workers hard-hit by the financial crisis. Such dramatic changes in employment status and income increase their vulnerability to exploitation and the need for RRA's support.