Parvati was born into a small family in Far Western Nepal. Since her family could not afford school fees, she has no formal education. She has a small piece of land, but it is not sufficient to provide food year-round for Parvati’s family, which includes her small son and daughter.
Motivated by the need to care for her family, Parvati joined HKI’s Homestead Food Production program, where she received training in homestead farming. After learning about how to cultivate nutrient-dense vegetables and raise chickens for egg production on a Village Model Farm, she received five chickens and seasonal vegetable seeds, along with the skills she needed to manage them. Before long, Parvati was able to multiply her five chickens to 16 and now feeds her family with healthy vegetables from her own garden and protein-rich eggs laid by her chickens.
With her family healthy and thriving, Parvati wants to give her children a chance to have the formal education she did not. To do so, she is selling her vegetables, eggs and hatched chicks to raise enough money to send them to school. “I will continue to raise more poultry and vegetables by renting additional land from big landholders,” she says. “I have a plan to send my children to a better school with my earnings.”
Beyond allowing her own family to benefit from her new skills, Parvati is helping other mothers in her community reach their full potential. She began teaching farming skills at her village’s infant and young child feeding group “I tell my friends and neighbors about the importance of eggs and vegetables for their children and for women when they are pregnant and breastfeeding.”
As we approach Mother’s Day, HKI will be celebrating mothers around the world. Mother’s like Parvati, who are a testament to courageous women everywhere and a reminder of how, with the right skills and tools, one mother can help many.
Amy Diallo is from the small village of Pout, which lies about 30 miles east of Dakar, 
