Ms. Jala Thapa, 32, of Pathariya VDC-1 in Kailali district is now a successful poultry-based entrepreneur and chairperson of a women’s group named Ujyaalo (Nepali word for ‘light/brightness’).
Previously, being engaged in agriculture (mostly farming on a crop-sharing basis), Ms. Thapa (with 0.23 hectares of land-holding) struggled to meet the requirements of six-member family. The seasonal work of her husband (in neighbouring India) also contributed to some extent in managing the basic needs of the family.
Ms. Thapa’s present-day success can be attributed to her affiliation in Ujyaalo Women’s Group in 2012, formed via the Nepal Development Program (NDP) of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) Nepal.
In August 2014, she got an opportunity to attend Start and Improve Your Business (SIYB) training, spanning five days. This inculcated the knowhow of business-plan preparation in her, which ultimately led to the establishment of her poultry enterprise from September the same year.
Taking into consideration her interest and need, she got poultry-rearing start-up support. This included facilitative/technical support on improved shed construction from project staffs, hundred broilers (chicks) and poultry-feed utensils, amounting NPR 11,000 (EUR 98.21). At the same time, she purchased additional 100 chicks on her own. Within four lots of her rearing, she kept 910 chicks in her farm.
In order to ensure timely vaccination, disease management and other livestock services, the project staffs also helped Ms. Thapa in establishing coordination with Livestock Service Centre.
Within 10 months, significant sales from four lots of poultry have been attained. The cumulative sale value from all this is NPR 385,940 (EUR 3445.89). Deducting costs incurred, her net income from those lots is NPR 146,600 (EUR 1308.92). Ms. Thapa’s future plans include expansion of the enterprise, with addition of chicks in upcoming lots. This will be fruitful for her as she has developed a good linkage with input suppliers and output marketers from nearby local markets and off-locations.
“Poultry is a profitable enterprise with higher market demand, even locally. With due concern and care in handling the chicks in terms of their rationing, vaccination and disease control measures, poultry-based enterprise provide promising returns,” says Ms. Thapa.