Sumila’s Story
Small business, big impact
Sumila is a 20 year old graduate for Kidasha’s Learning for Life project. When she was just 14 she left school to get married and became a mum at age 15. Her husband had to take a large loan to go and to go work in Saudi Arabia and was unable to support his family until he paid off this debt.
With no income and a large debt to be repaid, Sumila took inspiration from a neighbour and decided to rear pigs to sell to local butchers. She joined Kidasha’s Learning for Life project and received initial funding to start her business, 30% as a grant and 70% as a loan.
Sumila built a small sty on some land at the back of her home and bought four piglets.
She collected waste food from other households in her community to feed the pigs, avoiding the cost of buying food. Once the pigs reached the right weight she sold them to a local butcher and used some of the money to buy more piglets, and start the cycle again.
To date, Sumila has made enough profit to repay her loan and to pay off other family debts. She is also able to send her son to a slightly better school. She is very proud that despite still living with her husband’s family (as is the social practice in Nepal) she now has her own kitchen, giving her more independence.
She has confidence and ambition for a bright future. She now plans to build another smaller sty so she can buy more piglets before the others are ready for sale, reducing the gap between sales and providing more regular income.
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