Cambodia passed through three decades of civil war that destroyed all its infrastructures and even killed several millions of innocent people, especially from 1970 to 1979, the country was occupied by Pol Pot regime, more than one million people were killed. Although Cambodia was liberated from the Pol Pot regime in 1979 and there was a Paris peace agreement in 1991 and United Nation-supported national election in 1993, the civil war still remained until 1998. Although the war completely ended in late 1998, the rate of poverty was very high and the rural infrastructures such as road, school, hospital, pagoda, railway, etc. hadn’t been rehabilitated yet. The war had left several thousand orphans, widows and disabled people in the country. In addition, HIV/AIDS was a big concern for Cambodia either.
In order to participate with the government, both national and international organizations and Cambodian people in poverty reduction, in 1999 Khmer Association for Development (KAD) was established by a group of Cambodian people who had different educational backgrounds including dentists, professors, medical doctors and community development workers and legally registered with the Council of Minister in the same year. In addition, KAD has registered again with the Ministry of Interior on November 02, 2004.
The expenses on the establishment of KAD and the initial operation of the activities were the responsibility of the founders. After its founding in 1999, KAD first began to carry out the sewing skills training and English teaching for community children and adolescents with financial, in-kind and labor contributions of all founders and private donors in America. The following years since 2001, KAD gradually started to receive the tiny external support including Australian Embassy, Latter Day Saint Charities, Women’s International Group, Misereor, etc. At that time, there were only 5 staff, two of them work full time and got salaries and the rest were volunteers and the activities were done only in Kien Svay district where its head office was first located there too. In 2007, KAD moved its head office from Kien Svay to Ta Khmao town, Kandal provincial town and Kien Svay became the first branch office. In 2009, KAD formed its second office in Samraong Tong district, Kampong Speu province. Since it formed two more branch offices, KAD started to initiate some more projects and activities and to receive some funding. In 2011, KAD bought a plot of land in Trakiet Village, Trapaing Kong commune, Samraong Tong district, Kampong Speu province on which the Vulnerable Community Children Development Center has been built and in which some programs such as education, health care, vocational training, employment and child protection have been carried out.
In 2001, KAD registered as the member of World Association for Non-Government Organization and in 2006 – 2008, KAD was the member of NGO Good Practice Project of CCC that attended the monthly training workshops for two years. In 2011, KAD registered as the member of Khmer Development Program. KAD began to partner with One-2-One Charitable Trust in 2009.