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OPINION: Reimagining Cambodia’s Family Book Equal Recognition for Both Parents
- communicationinter3
- 3 days ago
- 5 min read
Future Forum's junior research fellow, Meynea Yi was published in The Cambodianess on October 9th, 2025. Check out the original article HERE, and read it below!
In Cambodia, a small booklet quietly governs nearly every major life chapter in a household. It is the “official proof” of who belongs to a family, who leads it and who is entitled to speak and act on its behalf. It is a prerequisite to validate important documents such as birth and marriage certificates, or even finalize divorces. This sievphov krousar – or “family book” – is needed to enroll kids in school, receive health care, IDPoor benefits, apply for a land title, and almost every other social support program.
In short, it is the document that connects a household to their legal rights. Yet hidden inside this small book is a quiet but powerful bias. It recognizes only one person as the “head of household” – 85 percent of whom are men.
This inequity is more than a minor administrative detail. It reflects a bureaucratic lapse that reinforces patriarchal assumptions of fathers leading and mothers following. The practice legally and symbolically sidelines women, even when they share responsibility and often anchor their families financially. It shows how the system fails to reflect the realities of modern Cambodian households.
The good news is a simple first-step to greater reform: revise the family book to allow for dual headship. It is a small but significant addition – one that could strengthen gender equality, and family security.
Power Within the Household
Because the family book sits at the center of Cambodia’s civil registration and social protection systems, whoever is listed as the head of household gains considerable authority and status.
This person becomes the official representative of the household in dealing with all kinds of family matters. They are presumed to be the main decision-maker and sign all the important documents – sending a blatant message that a de jure patriarch has ultimate say over a household.
This authority concentration on a single individual raises a deeper question about how much influence women actually have within their own households.
A United Nations report on gender disparity in Cambodia points out that most women have only moderate say over their own earnings. Albeit, the report notes – though sparingly – that women do participate in “most decisions” in their households.
It also indicates that most Cambodian women generally have a say over their own health care but have limited control over visits to their natal family. Currently, there is a paucity of data suggesting that women’s voices are fully incorporated into legal decision-making within their households – a dynamic that can ultimately be undermined by the single-headship system, whose balance of power is opaque and monolithic.
An Outdated System in a Changing Country
Even though Cambodia’s traditional patrilineal system was never legally mandated, it continues to shape official procedures in ways that do not mirror modern household dynamics.
Many women effectively lead their households.
In rural areas, it’s common for men to migrate to Thailand or to other provinces for work, leaving wives to manage everything at home, from farming and finances to raising children and dealing with local authorities.
According to the Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training, more than 1.2 million Cambodian migrant workers were in Thailand in 2024, with men accounting for over half. Seeking transnational employment to mitigate economic woes and job pressures at home has long been a linchpin for the evolution of household responsibility.
However, following the mass return of more than 900,000 migrant workers after deadly border clashes with Thailand in July 2025, the disruptive effect on future efforts to amend the family book for equal binary headship remains to be seen.
In some households, women have become the primary breadwinners as returning men continue to search for work. Their authority over household decisions, particularly finances, is most likely still constrained, given existing data that points to persistent gender disparities in control of earnings. This suggests that even when women carry the economic burden, their role in decision-making often remains secondary.
Women take on these responsibilities – not only when husbands migrate, but also in ordinary times and in moments of crisis.
For instance, after her husband passed away unexpectedly in 2020, a woman in Kampong Thom was left to provide for her family alone. To support her daughter and grandson, she became the sole breadwinner.
Widows and single mothers, too, often shoulder the full weight of family leadership, yet remain invisible in the eyes of the law. If they are not listed as head of household in the family book, they can face serious obstacles – such as delays in accessing social services, enrolling children in school, or managing property – precisely at moments when their families are most vulnerable.
In Kampong Chhnang, for example, one widowed mother whose husband died in a traffic accident was left weaving baskets for 60 cents a day. Her sons were forced to leave school to help support the family.
Despite carrying this burden, women like her are often denied recognition as household heads because of deeply ingrained social norms that cast them in secondary roles. This hesitation to formally acknowledge women as family heads persists, especially when male relatives are still alive, reinforcing a system that does not reflect the reality of Cambodian households.
Reform that Represents Reality
By adding both parents to be listed as co-heads of the household in the family book, we will strengthen equity in our family registration system. This would not force all families to have two registered householders, but would give them the option for both parents to share decision making power for the family.
A study conducted by the International Society of Environmental and Rural Development found that more and more Cambodian women actively contribute to household income and decision-making, especially in rural areas where women are running small businesses or farms.
For reform to happen, the Ministry of Interior would need to update its regulations and the national ID system to accept two registrants. This change would better represent the real structure of Cambodian households, where caregiving and providing are often shared duties.
Allowing dual headship would also protect families during difficult times.
Studies from the peer-reviewed Global Public Health journal highlighted that having a higher share of women among community leaders has positively affected children’s learning and nutrition because women often prioritize spending on their families' well-being.
More importantly, this reform would promote gender equality by officially recognizing women’s equal authority and contributions within the family.
UNDP findings further show that when women have greater access to and control over economic resources, they are more likely to generate income, with benefits extending to both families and communities. Recognizing equal authority within the family would not only strengthen household security but also advance national development.
Allowing both parents to be heads of a household may seem like overcoming a minor bureaucratic gap, but it sends a powerful message of fairness and respect – assisting Cambodia in fulfilling commitments to gender equality under international agreements like CEDAW.
Revising the family book to allow dual headship may seem like a modest reform. But in practice it would send a powerful message: that the law recognizes what families already know, that leadership and responsibility are often shared.