Firty-year-old Jasibun Nisha Musalman from Kapilvastu District was living a difficult life and bearing the burden of feeding her family of 17 members. With the family’s income only just enough to cover bare necessities, the lockdown induced by the pandemic pushed them to further deprivation.

Both her businesses were struck by lockdown. She sold vegetables in the weekly market nearby (cultivated in her 338 m2 of land) but as the lockdown began, her income fell short and it was never enough to feed all the family members. She also ran a shop with goods bought from the nearby Indian border which couldn’t be operated due to the lockdown.

But through a training run by UMN’s partner* Jasibun learned about cultivating high-value crops. Within a span of three months, she then earned extra money by selling the high-value off-season vegetables which she cultivated. She also received seed money of NPR 5,000 (approx. USD 41) to re-start her business, from a fund for poor and marginalised people in Mayadevi Rural Municipality. Finally Jasibun was able to re-start her business which had been closed for six months.

Now she is a model farmer and a shopkeeper in her community. The support received from the project makes her hopeful for a brighter future for her and her community.