Bimala Lama

Shopkeeper

‘I am able to stand on my own now’ MY name is Bimala Lama, 52 years old, and I live in Indrasarowar Rural Municipality with my family of six including my husband, son, daughter, daughter-in-law, granddaughter, and myself. For years, I ran a small grocery shop to support my household. However, due to our weak economic condition and limited sales, it was a daily struggle to manage household expenses. I am a member of Gatishil Sanakisan Krishi Sahakari, an agriculture-based cooperative in my community. One day, during our group meeting, I learned about a soft loan program supported by Nepal-ease in collaboration with our cooperative. I immediately saw this as an opportunity to improve my shop and my income. Without delay, I visited the cooperative office, discussed my plan with the officer, and applied for the loan. Soon after, I received Rs. 50,000 as a soft loan. I invested the entire amount into expanding my grocery shop adding more stock, varieties, and essential items that customers in my village needed. Today, my sales have grown significantly. I now earn an average monthly profit of around Rs. 15000, which not only helps me comfortably manage my family’s daily expenses but also allows me to save regularly in the cooperative, for the future. Alongside my business, I also serve the community as a Female Community Health Volunteer, reaching rural women and children with basic health awareness and support to improve maternal and child health contributing in reducing child and maternal mortality rate in my community. This gives me immense satisfaction, as I can now contribute both economically and socially to my community. What once felt like a constant struggle has now turned into a story of growth, self-reliance, and giving back. Thank you to Nepal-ease and the cooperative for this soft loan scheme, which has been a crucial means of livelihood by enabling needy rural women like me to start and improving small-scale entrepreneurship.

Kabita Pariyar

Tailor

‘A Journey from Discrimination to Dignity’ My name is Kabita Pariyar. I am 27 years old and live in Sisneri Tekker Bazaar, a small market along the Kathmandu–Hetauda road, with my husband and our young son, Babu, who is currently in kindergarten. My husband is a tailor, and together we run a small tailoring shop right by the roadside. We belong to a so-called untouchable caste, and for many years, we faced discrimination in nearly every aspect of life — from daily interactions to opportunities for progress. However, life has changed. With self-employment, a stable income, and the unwavering support of NEPAL-ease through our local cooperative, I now live a life of dignity. I feel proud to say that I am becoming a source of inspiration for other women from similar backgrounds. To grow our tailoring business, I took a loan of NPR 100,000 from the cooperative’s special fund, which offers loans at a nominal interest rate. With this support, I was able to purchase additional sewing machines and a variety of fabrics. We now specialize in custom orders, especially for neighboring women, sewing traditional garments like kurta surwal, chaubandi cholo, and petticoats — clothes that hold cultural value and everyday importance. Through honest work and timely delivery, our shop is gaining trust and recognition in the community. Every stitch I sew carries the story of resilience — not just mine, but of many women like me who are rewriting their future. Within the span of one year, I successfully repaid a loan of NPR 100,000, including nominal interest, and was also able to earn a profit of NPR 51,000. Looking ahead, I am considering applying for another loan to expand my sewing shop by adding a wider variety of fabrics and offering more diversified services to my clients, including more women from neighboring communities. In the meantime, as a member of the women's cooperative and a self-reliant entrepreneur, I have observed a significant shift in how people in my neighborhood perceive and treat me. Their attitudes, which were once quite different, have become much more respectful and encouraging. The women’s cooperative also gave me the opportunity to participate in a short orientation program on women's rights and violence against women. This training helped me gain a deeper understanding of the issues women face and the legal avenues available to address such challenges. I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to NEPAL-ease for its invaluable support, which has played a crucial role in helping me reach this point. Today, I am proud to call myself an independent woman living a life of dignity.

Bhoj Kamari Ghalan

Vegetable Farmer

‘My Struggle Changed my Life’ My name is Bhoj Kumari Ghalan, I am 46 years old, and I live in Thaha Municipality, Makwanpur district with my family of five, including my husband, a son, two daughters, and myself. For the past ten years, I have been a share member of Kuteshwari Women Cooperative, receiving saving and credit facilities that have supported me in goat rearing and vegetable farming to manage my household expenses. Life, however, was far from easy. My husband struggled with alcoholism and did not support me either in farming or in household responsibilities. The entire burden of running the house and paying for my children’s education fell on my shoulders alone. At one point, I took a loan of Rs. 100,000 from the cooperative at an interest rate of 14.75% and invested it in goat and vegetable farming. Unfortunately, the returns were much lower than I had hoped. With poor results from the goats, I could not repay the loan on time, and it became very difficult to manage both the debt and daily expenses. Yet, I refused to give up and I kept pushing myself to find a way to improve my family’s living condition. Seeing my difficult financial situation, Shanti Waiba, the Manager of our cooperative, told me about a soft loan scheme supported by Nepal-ease in collaboration with our cooperative. She encouraged me to apply for this opportunity and try investing in a new business so that I could repay the previous loan as well. Without delay, I applied and soon received Rs. 30,000 as a soft loan at only 6% interest. With determination, I invested the entire amount in cauliflower farming on my small plot of land. To my great relief and joy, the hard work paid off. Within just five months, I earned around Rs. 250,000 from selling cauliflower. This success allowed me to repay both the soft loan and my earlier remaining loan Rs 45000 with interest as well as the another loan Rs 120,000 received from money lender. After clearing the debts, I was even able to save a portion in the cooperative while covering household expenses and my children’s education. Now, I am planning to take another soft loan and expand into goat farming during the off-season for vegetables, making the best use of both opportunities. What once felt like an endless struggle has now transformed into a story of success. Today, I feel proud that I can stand on my own feet, contribute to my family’s well-being, and inspire other women in my community who are facing similar challenges. I sincerely thank Nepal-ease and our cooperative for introducing this soft loan scheme. It has become a lifeline for women like me, helping us not only to survive but to move forward with dignity by starting and improving small-scale business.