38-year-old Parbati had only ever worked at home, dedicated to looking after her family. Her husband, a teacher, was the sole earner but his salary was not enough to provide for the family’s basic needs. They could not afford to send their children to school. Prabati’s father-in-law used to be a member of Durga Self Help Group [SHG] that INF helped form in Balaramwapur, Kapilvastu District in west Nepal. Due to his deteriorating health her husband took the place of his father in the SHG. In one of the meetings a discussion was held on increasing incomes of families through different schemes. The group decided to support Parbati with a tailoring training.

Parbati now has her own sewing machine and earns about NPR 12,000 [US$112]. She even gets sewing requests from the ladies from nearby villages. Her husband also started vegetable farming with support from the group. With the income that Parbati and her husband together earn they have been able to better care for their family and send their children to school.

“We are grateful towards INF for the change in our life”, says Parbati.

Self-Help Groups play a key role in INF’s Community Health and Development work across hundreds of communities in Western Nepal.