August 15, 2025
PHNOM PENH – Several government ministries are working together to arrange schooling for the estimated 50,000 children who have returned from Thailand with their migrant worker parents. They are helping the parents to enrol their children, while also facilitating the issuance of civil status documents, to ensure that all citizens comply with the law.
During a meeting to promote closer cooperation in assisting citizens returning from Thailand — held on August 13 and chaired by Minister of Interior Sar Sokha — Minister of Labour and Vocational Training Heng Sour shared that, as of August 13, more than 900,000 Cambodians had returned from Thailand. This figure was based upon numbers provided by the border authorities.
The labour ministry has classified the returnees into three groups, explained Sour.
Group one, around 250,000 people aged over 45, is targeted mainly for agricultural and community-based enterprises.
More than 900,000 returnees have been recorded since border tensions began to simmer. PHOTO: GDI/THE PHNOM PENH POST
Group 2 is the estimated 50,000 who returned with their parents. The Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport will work with other authorities to ensure they are enrolled in schools.
Group 3 is made up of working-age adults who are ready to join the labour market or receive vocational and professional training.
Sour noted that the provinces with the highest numbers of workers leaving for Thailand — and returning — include Battambang, Banteay Meanchey, Siem Reap, Kampong Thom and Prey Veng.
After personally welcoming many of the returning citizens, he praised the active contributions of the young Cambodians from the Union of Youth Federations of Cambodia (UYFC) in Battambang, whose participation alongside officials and local authorities earned them recognition from the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the International Labour Organization (ILO).
He added that ministry officials have been conducting labour market outreach and collecting data from citizens in over 400 communes so far, out of a planned 1,000, to facilitate meetings between factory representatives and job seekers. Additionally, the ministry’s hotline 1297 receives over 1,000 calls per day from citizens requesting job interviews.
The ministries are also working to ensure that all citizens comply with the law. PHOTO: GDI/THE PHNOM PENH POST
Interior minister Sokha stressed how the interior and labour ministries have implemented Prime Minister Hun Manet’s directive to coordinate the smooth and warm reception of returning citizens — even those lacking documentation.
“Within the interior ministry, the General Department of Identification has been expediting the provision of civil status and identification services to citizens, to ensure legal compliance,” he noted.
He also expressed his support for the labour ministry’s efforts to coordinate with potential employees and encourage them to accept job applications from returning migrant workers without requiring certain documents.
Sokha added that the prime minister has instructed the interior and labour ministries to establish mechanisms for information sharing, addressing challenges and developing appropriate strategies for the future to manage the flow of citizens in and out of the country more effectively.
He emphasised new measures to tighten control over illegal border crossings, as well as preparations to receive incoming migrants, while continuing cooperation with the labour ministry on related matters.