Life-Changing Chickens

In Nepal, if you are poor and have no children to care for you in your old age, you have a big challenge. This was the situation for Ramesh and his wife, Jaya. Their local church in Palpa wanted to help them, and tasked its social outreach team to find a sustainable way to do so. The team wisely consulted the couple, and together they made a plan.

In his younger years, Ramesh had raised chickens. Since he had never owned his own land, he had done so on other people’s farms. “My wife and I would like to raise chickens now,” he said. “There is land around us, and our landlord is willing for us to use it,” Ramesh said, “but I can’t afford to pay for the space, let alone pay for chickens.”

A small grant from DDHCFN gave Ramesh and Jaya the jump-start they needed. They purchased the necessary equipment from the local agricultural support center. Volunteers from the church helped them clear some land and build the coop.

After a rocky start the first year, Ramesh and Jaya now have a steady little business. Raising 200 chickens at a time, every 45 days they sell them to the local butcher and order new chicks to take their place.

Jaya pats the sacks piled up next to the house. The contents - chicken manure - is sold to local farmers, giving the couple a few extra rupees. “This is a good life for an old couple like us,” she says. “It keeps us busy and it pays our bills. We are grateful. God is good.”

Ramesh & Jaya’s chicken farm is another example of the way DDHCFN partners with Nepali groups and congregations that seek to uplift needy people in their communities. Rather than providing continuous support - which thereby risks dependency - DDHCFN helps to get small projects off the ground – projects the partner and the beneficiaries themselves can maintain in the future.