Cambodia has taken a major step towards developing its first national suicide prevention action plan, following a landmark two-day workshop led by the Ministry of Health and supported by the World Health Organization (WHO) under the LIVE LIFE initiative.
Held in Phnom Penh in early 2025, the workshop brought together more than 230 participants from all 25 provinces − spanning government, civil society, health, education, international development and religious sectors − for the country’s first suicide-specific situation analysis and one of the largest in-person consultations of its kind in the world.
The message from Cambodia was clear: suicide is everyone’s concern.
The workshop was opened by His Excellency Professor Chheang Ra, Minister of Health, with over 100 government officials in attendance, signalling high-level commitment. Sessions led by staff from the Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse of the Ministry of Health, as well as by WHO personnel, provided participants with an evidence-based perspective on suicide prevention.
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His Excellency Professor Chheang Ra, Minister of Health of Cambodia, with government officials, WHO and representatives from civil society, health, religious and other sectors during the landmark consultation workshop on suicide prevention. Photo credit: Cambodia Ministry of Health / Keo Vannthet
Grounded in data and lived experiences
Using WHO’s LIVE LIFE framework, the participants examined risk and protective factors, data gaps and current interventions for suicide. Key risks included limited mental health services in rural areas, intergenerational trauma, stigma, and access to lethal means such as pesticides and prescription drugs.
Survivors of the Khmer Rouge regime shared their lived experiences from the civil war and how trauma can affect suicidal behaviour in the long term. At the same time, young people today face their own set of challenges, especially those who are victims of violence and economically vulnerable populations. For young people like Kesor*, who moved to Phnom Penh by herself from her province to study in the capital, the weight of her unspoken struggles became almost unbearable.
“I didn’t want to tell my family about what happened to me. I didn’t want to be a burden, knowing that my siblings were also going through hardship,” she recalled. As her mental health declined, she withdrew from friends, lost her appetite and battled frequent nightmares. “There was a time when I thought about ending my life.”
Everything began to shift after she began seeing a mental health counsellor. “At first, I was scared to talk to the counsellor. But after a few sessions, I started to understand what I was going through. I remembered who I used to be. Slowly, I started to go out again, and I felt good returning to school. I could eat regularly and had fewer nightmares.”
Participants also emphasized that not all the answers lie in clinical care. Strong religious and family networks emerged as protective factors. Buddhist monks and religious leaders − trusted community counsellors − were highlighted as essential allies in reducing the stigma of mental illness and advancing prevention of suicide./countries/cambodia/khm-suicide-prevention-workshop.png?sfvrsn=d6efa8c1_3 "KHM suicide prevention workshop")
Participants exchanged ideas during the workshop, which used
WHO’s LIVE LIFE framework. Photo credit: WHO / Ada Moadsiri
Cambodia’s first-ever Suicide Prevention Action Plan
The consultation laid the foundation for Cambodia’s first multisectoral suicide prevention action plan, now being finalized by an inter-ministerial technical working group. Key components of the action plan include restricting access to means, engaging media, fostering life skills in adolescents, and strengthening health-care and community responses.
“This multisectoral action plan based on LIVE LIFE is a major step forward for Cambodia and will lay the foundation for suicide prevention in the country for many years to come,” said Dr Chhit Sophal, Director of the Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse of the Ministry of Health.
This collaboration reflects an important movement − one that moves beyond treatment to engage communities, embracing socioeconomic realities, context and culture to build mental health solutions grounded in people’s lived experiences.
*Name has been changed to protect her privacy.