Visiting Women’s Bank entrepreneurs in Bhattedanda

Radha Sapkota and her tomato tunnel.

We had the possibility to meet 2 entrepreneurs.

The first women entrepreneur was Bibi May Ghalan, 35 years old. She has a husband, 11 years old son and 17 years old daughter in her family. Her main farming products are lettuce, tomatoes, coriander, beans, chili peppers and onions. The farming fields are in use during all year around, something is growing all the time at her fields. One half of the fields are for the vegetable farming and the other
half is for the corn farming.

Bibi is very happy because she has been able to gain an income of around 16.000npr per year from vegetables. She is also getting income from selling buffalo’s milk, she has 3 buffalos and she gets 18 liters milk per day from them. In the future she is going to concentrate more in the bean and lettuce farming, she is also planning to have another tomato tunnel. She transports the products to the collection center and then they’re going to the market places for sale. Bibi is happy with vegetable and mustard farming, they’re both very stable farming items, sometimes the whole corn crop might get destroyed by the natural conditions. She has participated to the literate class offered by this Women’s Bank project, but she dropped out after she learned how to write her own name.

Some earnings are coming also from goat milk.

The second women entrepreneur we met was Radha Sapkota, 30 years old. Radha is living with her husband and three children, son 5 years old and 2 daughters 13 and 10 years old. She farms tomatoes, onions, garlic, cabbage, cauliflower, chili peppers and eggplants. Her main farming product is tomatoes and she gets 35.000nrp per year from it.

The support from Women’s Bank program: She has participated to the tomato tunnel training and got a loan for 20.000npr which she has already paid back. Radha has had the farming business now for 3 years and before that she only had buffalos. Her farming products are going to the collection center where she gets 60npr per kilo from tomatoes. All the earnings are going to her husband’s pocket, because he is the one who is taking the product to the collection center. Her husband is giving her money if is she needs it. Radha said that her husband is very flexible when it comes to giving some money to her. Before farming tomatoes she has been dependent on her husband and now she has gained her independence.

Radha has also some cattle: 2 buffalos and 2 goats. She gets 7 liters milk per day and gets 500npr yearnings from that. She wants to expand her business; she has already a place for more tomato tunnels. Radha is very happy with her business situation and her life.

Every month Radha gets savings from 2000npr to 3000npr. She is going to use the savings to her children’s education and maintain their home.

Text: Katri Tiainen ja Tuovi Wallén
Photos: Katri Tiainen

Farming tools.

Bibi farming her onions.

Water collection tank that the farmers use during the dry season, March, April and May.

Onion farming in Bhattedanda.

Lettuce farming in Bhattedanda.