As Cambodia and Korea position themselves as leaders in rainwater awareness, education and training, Cambodia has launched the Rain School Initiative which is aiming to establish 1,000 ‘Rain Schools’ equipped with rainwater harvesting and filtration systems to provide clean water while also promoting climate sustainability and educating students about water conservation.

The initiative has already set up five operational ‘Rain Schools’ in the Mekong River region, aided by financial support from the Mekong-Korea Cooperation Fund (MKCF) and supported by the Mekong Institute (MI), creating a number of educational hubs to provide water management training and resources.
The Cambodian Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports (MoEYS) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Royal Academy of Cambodia (RAC), in collaboration with South Korea and Seoul National University (SNU).

Rain Schools focus on the construction of rainwater storage facilities and filtration systems in schools, enabling student access to clean water and promoting student education in effective rainwater management.

The first Rain School to be established in Southeast Asia was located at the Nguyen Binh Khiem School in Ha Long City, Vietnam, in 2022. The rainwater collection system installed there consists of a single storage tank incorporating a special film that treats the water as it flows down from the roof. The system also incorporates multiple treatment stages that avoids the failure of the whole system if failure of one stage should occur. There are now Rain Schools operating in Cambodia, South Korea and Vietnam.

The Cambodian Rain School Initiative also aims to establish community-based rainwater harvesting systems, sharing relevant knowledge with Korea by establishing a water management network with SNU.
MoEYS, RAC and SNU are seeking support from the United Nations (UN) with the aim of extending the initiative across 1,000 primary schools across Cambodia. This will be a careful step-by-step process, implemented in phases with MoEYS prioritising public primary schools as these schools are particularly vulnerable to drought. Cambodia is also discussing potential partnerships with international organisations such as the UN, WHO and UNICEF, focused on training.

The innovative Rainwater for Drinking (RFD) systems installed at Rain Schools are based on a deep understanding of the value of rainwater, reflecting local and historical cultural traditions. Each RFD provides 500 litres of safe drinking water per day, providing enough purified drinking water to meet demand at schools all year round.

The initiative is endorsed by the UN Water Action Agenda, promoting awareness and collaboration across the region by engaging students in addressing global water challenges through educational activities. The initiative also aligns with UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly the water-related targets of UN SDG 6.1.

Global Rain School activities were the subject of a presentation delivered to a side event at the UN Water Conference, attended by students from a number of countries and bringing together stakeholders to discuss the pivotal role of rainwater management and explore potential strategies for future broader implementation. An article in The Source helped to introduce the schools to water professionals resulting in a Rain School Camp taking place in South Korea.