CDC in Cambodia

A triage system set up at Siem Reap Provincial Hospital on March 2020 after identifying a case-contact who tested positive for COVID-19.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) established an office in the Kingdom of Cambodia in 2002. CDC works with the country’s Ministry of Health (MOH), local and international and partners to address HIV/AIDS, malaria, influenza, and COVID-19. The collaboration strengthens Cambodia’s laboratory, surveillance, and workforce capacity to respond to disease outbreaks.
Global Health Security
Resilient public health systems can quickly prevent, detect, and respond to infectious disease threats before they become epidemics. CDC’s Center for Global Health, Division of Global Health Protection team in Cambodia works to improve the country’s ability to respond to public health emergencies. CDC Cambodia supports workforce capacity building. CDC Cambodia has played a key role in the Cambodian MOH’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Cambodia was the largest country in the world without a single COVID-19 death in 2020

CDC Cambodia served as a leading partner in Cambodia’s COVID-19 Surveillance Technical Working Group

CDC Cambodia provided guidance and training to public health responders working on the COVID-19 response

CDC Cambodia supported the Ministry of Health’s Emergency Operations Center

As of December 2020, there were 36 graduates from the Frontline Field Epidemiology Training Program (FETP). These epidemiologists are trained to detect, prevent and control diseases before they become epidemics

CDC Cambodia supports the Cambodian Applied Veterinary Epidemiology Training (CAVET). The 75 graduates respond to zoonotic disease outbreaks
HIV/AIDS and TB
CDC works with the MOH to build a sustainable HIV response program. Cambodia aims to sustain control and eliminate HIV. CDC’s work focuses on these areas:
- Finding undiagnosed HIV cases and placing them on treatment.
- Ensuring treatment continuity and client-centered treatment services.
- Developing an HIV case-based surveillance system that uses real-time data from HIV recency testing to find and respond quickly to outbreaks.
- Improving laboratory systems to detect and monitor HIV.
- Adopting and ensuring nationwide implementation of international HIV policies.

CDC Cambodia works with the Cambodian national HIV and TB control programs to ensure people living with HIV (PLHIV) are screened for TB and provided TB preventive treatment

Cambodia was among the first U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) countries to achieve HIV epidemic control in 2002. CDC Cambodia supported this achievement with funding from PEPFAR
Laboratory Capacity Building
CDC helps strengthen the quality of laboratory systems in Cambodia to accurately diagnose, monitor, and treat infections including HIV/AIDS, COVID-19, tuberculosis, influenza viruses, and other pathogens.

CDC Cambodia helped implement a laboratory quality management system (LQMS) and obtain International Organization for Standardization (ISO) accreditation for HIV hub laboratories

With technical support from CDC, the Cambodian National Institute of Public Health Reference Lab was accredited with International Organization for Standardization (ISO) on February 2019
Malaria
The U.S. President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI) supports CDC and U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) work with Cambodia’s National Center for Parasitology, Entomology and Malaria. The partners collaborate to pilot and expand malaria elimination activities in Western Cambodia. PMI supports the National Malaria Elimination Action Framework of scaling up control and elimination activities for a malaria-free Cambodia by 2025. CDC and USAID provide:
- Technical assistance for surveillance (antimalarial drug resistance and insecticide resistance)
- Case management
- Supply chain management
- Vector monitoring
- Social and behavior change communication

CDC malaria work in Cambodia includes surveillance, vector monitoring, case management and social and behavior change communication
Influenza
CDC works with the Cambodian government and partners to help build influenza surveillance and laboratory capacity. Cambodia contributes to the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Global Influenza Network.

CDC supports identification and characterization of circulating novel influenza viruses
Cambodia’s FETP Graduates Respond to COVID-19 – July 21, 2020
Celebrating 15 Years of a Successful Partnership – June 30, 2020
CDC in Cambodia – Strengthening laboratory biosafety and biosecurity through legislation – April 5, 2018
Management Matters: The Link Between Management Capacity Building and Greater Global Health Security – February 20, 2018