Fatema Begum (27), a mother of two, lives with her husband, Rashidul Islam (38), in Mirganj Union of Jaldhaka Upazila in Nilphamari district. They are landless and her husband works as an agricultural day labourer on other people’s land. He earns around BDT 400 a day and somehow manages to support his family.
In 2023, some 27 PPEPP-EU members of the Kazipara Prosperity Village Committee (PVC), including Fatema, received a house each from the government’s ‘Asrayan’ project through the PPEPP-EU project’s linkage support. Subsequently, Fatema received support from the project to establish a vegetable garden with technical and financial support from the local Agriculture Office and the Agricultural Extension Department of Jaldhaka Upazila. In her first year, she sold vegetables worth about BDT 28,000.
Due to her interest in goat rearing, Fatima also received two goats as grants from the PPEPP-EU project. She now has two cows, nine goats and 12 chickens at her house. In addition, Fatima was linked to the Jaldhaka Upazila Livestock Department, where she received an 8-day training on cow fattening. After completing this training, confident Fatima now plans to establish a small-scale cow farm. PPEPP-EU’s local advocacy with the Union Parishad also helped Fatima secure a VGF and a ration card from the government’s social safety net programme.
“Our poverty and deprivation have come to an end because of the PPEPP-EU project. Many thanks and gratitude to this project for staying by our side”, said Fatima. Following her example, other PPEPP-EU members in the community are now seeking necessary advice and services through the Agriculture and Livestock Extension Offices.
The PPEPP-EU project’s grassroots advocacy through community mobilisation, creates livelihood opportunities for members through the government’s skill development programmes. The project’s strong linkages to the government’s local agriculture, livestock and fisheries extension offices, as well as to other departments, such as the Department of Social Services, help members access training in income-generating activities and other necessary services.
To date, 5,185 members have participated in government capacity-building programmes offering livelihood opportunities such as cow fattening, mushroom cultivation, beautification, tailoring, and catering, with durations ranging from one to three months.