Skip to main content

LUP Student Papers

LUND UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES

Assessing the Impact of Sida’s Funding Withdrawal on Cambodia’s Education System: Challenges and Adaptations

Nok, Sorsesekha LU (2025) SIMZ31 20251
Graduate School
Abstract (Swedish)
This study explores the perceived significance of Sida’s funding in Cambodia’s education sector and how education-related organisations have adapted to the financial shortfall following Sida’s withdrawal. Drawing on Resource Dependence Theory (RDT), the research highlights the critical role Sida played as a valued donor, supporting a wide range of educational initiatives from primary to higher education, including inclusive education, human rights education, as well as research. Despite Sida’s departure reflecting broader shifts in Swedish foreign policy, its legacy endures in various projects adopted by Cambodia’s Ministry of Education, Youth, and Sports. Education-related organisations employed diverse strategies to respond to the... (More)
This study explores the perceived significance of Sida’s funding in Cambodia’s education sector and how education-related organisations have adapted to the financial shortfall following Sida’s withdrawal. Drawing on Resource Dependence Theory (RDT), the research highlights the critical role Sida played as a valued donor, supporting a wide range of educational initiatives from primary to higher education, including inclusive education, human rights education, as well as research. Despite Sida’s departure reflecting broader shifts in Swedish foreign policy, its legacy endures in various projects adopted by Cambodia’s Ministry of Education, Youth, and Sports. Education-related organisations employed diverse strategies to respond to the funding gap by focusing on resource diversification through project bidding, forming partnerships, engaging with the public and private sectors, and income-generating activities, alongside internal expenditure control measures. While RDT reflects many of these adaptive strategies, the study identifies the importance of internal management practices often overlooked by the theory. Challenges such as limited government support and insufficient private sector engagement were also noted. While this study sheds light on understanding the impact of Sida withdrawal from Cambodia’s education sector, it also comes with certain limitations as it only focuses on recipient organisations’ perspectives. At the same time, it does not take into account of donor’s perspective. Therefore, future research should include donor perspectives and apply multiple theoretical lenses to better understand the evolving landscape of international development aid. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Nok, Sorsesekha LU
supervisor
organization
course
SIMZ31 20251
year
type
H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
subject
keywords
Sida, Cambodia’s Education Sector, Development Aid, Resource Dependence Theory (RDT), Funding Diversification, Dependency, Adaptation Strategies
language
English
id
9211317
date added to LUP
2025-09-19 13:36:48
date last changed
2025-09-19 13:36:48
@misc{9211317,
  abstract     = {{This study explores the perceived significance of Sida’s funding in Cambodia’s education sector and how education-related organisations have adapted to the financial shortfall following Sida’s withdrawal. Drawing on Resource Dependence Theory (RDT), the research highlights the critical role Sida played as a valued donor, supporting a wide range of educational initiatives from primary to higher education, including inclusive education, human rights education, as well as research. Despite Sida’s departure reflecting broader shifts in Swedish foreign policy, its legacy endures in various projects adopted by Cambodia’s Ministry of Education, Youth, and Sports. Education-related organisations employed diverse strategies to respond to the funding gap by focusing on resource diversification through project bidding, forming partnerships, engaging with the public and private sectors, and income-generating activities, alongside internal expenditure control measures. While RDT reflects many of these adaptive strategies, the study identifies the importance of internal management practices often overlooked by the theory. Challenges such as limited government support and insufficient private sector engagement were also noted. While this study sheds light on understanding the impact of Sida withdrawal from Cambodia’s education sector, it also comes with certain limitations as it only focuses on recipient organisations’ perspectives. At the same time, it does not take into account of donor’s perspective. Therefore, future research should include donor perspectives and apply multiple theoretical lenses to better understand the evolving landscape of international development aid.}},
  author       = {{Nok, Sorsesekha}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Assessing the Impact of Sida’s Funding Withdrawal on Cambodia’s Education System: Challenges and Adaptations}},
  year         = {{2025}},
}