Tag Archives: Improved Income

Increased Income Leads to a Better Life

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Tuerdi with one of his family's cows.

With the funding provided by Heifer, Tuerdi — who with his family has a small farm in Yarkant Village, Xinjiang, China — had bought a cow of a fine breed, and with his painstaking care it had been raised into a rather large animal. However, Tuerdi was in a great anxiety, for the cow had never been in heat during the past several months. With the help from the Heifer project community facilitator, Tuerdi got in contact with the local animal husbandry bureau. After examining the cow, the vet told Tuerdi that the obesity of the cow may have prevented her from being in heat. He advised Tuerdi to transfer the cow to a more spacious and cooler place where the cow would be able to move around for some exercises. Following this advice, the cow was really in heat after a while. Tuerdi was so excited that he could not wait to phone the veterinarian to mate the cow. Now that one month has passed, Tuerdi is waiting for the miracle with high expectations.

The the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, Tuerdi and his wife fasted in accordance with the Uighur’s custom. For their children’s health, they bought five kilograms of meat and slaughtered three chickens and three ducks the family had raised. All of these foods were enough for the children. In addition, the four Bada wood trees and an acre of walnuts (of high quality through grafting) began to bear fruits, resulting in a total of 15 kg of Bada wood and 5 kg of walnuts. Although the gains are not very much, Tuerdi is very pleased to see that their work is finally paying off, and he says he will save these fruits for his family instead of selling them.

Tuerdi is also looking for additional ways to increase his income. Soon, his one acre of corn will be harvested. He hopes to use the corn stalks as forage. And he will grasp another chance to realize another plan: the season of cotton harvest season in South Xinjiang is coming soon, and many Shache farmers would earn money through picking cotton in other places. Because there will be no one left at home, they will sell all their sheep. The price will fall and Tuerdi plans to buy the sheep to increase his flock from 10 to 20. After a while, when price of these sheep is better, he will sell them all to earn some money. He believes that through his effort, his life will be much better in the near future.

Editor’s note: This post is part of a series that follows the progress of specific families, starting at the beginning of their work with Heifer. You can read previous posts about Tuerdi and his family here.

A Happier Home in Cambodia

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Article and video by Chris Kenning, World Ark contributor

Bung Kriel, CAMBODIA—The son of subsistence rice farmers, Chom Thoun grew up in a thatched-roof home on stilts, in a childhood marked by war with the Khmer Rouge, illnesses from poor sanitation and months of hunger each year when the family’s small harvest ran out.

“Our family was very poor, sometimes we didn’t have rice to eat,” said Chom, speaking recently on a shaded bamboo bed under this home, tucked among the rice paddies of Svay Rieng, one of the country’s poorest provinces located near the Vietnamese border.

The fighting had ended by the time he entered his 30s, and he had started a family with five children. But as he hand-plowed the same rice paddies, life was still a daily struggle. Relying on rain-fed rice grown in poor soil on small plot, he did not having enough to feed his family through the year. He was often forced to leave his wife, Toeu, and children to work as a laborer in the city.

While the now 40-year-old farmer still lives in a home without electricity, running water or plumbing, his fortunes have improved significantly in recent years with the help of a Heifer International’s self-help group program that he entered in 2007.

Speaking through an interpreter a few weeks ago on a World Ark visit, Chom said Heifer provided a cow, vegetable seeds, fruit tree saplings and training on how to keep animals and crops healthier by adopting changes such as adding mosquito netting to an animal shelter.

He also joined Heifer’s self-help savings group made up of villagers contributing small amounts for low-interest loans. That allowed Chom to start new vegetables and sugar cane, which they sell at market. In addition to passing on the cow’s offspring to another family in need, Chom also earns money by treating sick animals in the village, a skill he learned through Heifer.

“My life before was hard,” he said. “My living conditions improved; I could buy a bike so my daughter could get to school.”

He said their annual income has more than doubled from $200 a year to $500 a year, allowing them build a new home out of wood with a tin roof. There’s now enough food all year round, because they were able to buy more land for rice. And, fish, eggs or fowl—once a rare treat—are now a nearly daily part of their diet. They even have a small TV powered by a car battery.

They’re just some of more than 8,800 vulnerable Cambodian families that Heifer has helped since 1999 in a country long battered by war and extreme poverty.

Heifer’s programs currently operate in 188 poor rural communities, where they aim to increase food security, incomes and well-being by providing help such as animals and seeds, farmer education, microfinance and a more recent effort to boost basic literacy and math skills.

In Bung Kriel village, home to about 86 families and located in a province known for its low-quality farmland, child malnutrition, illiteracy, distance to markets and health care, and legacy of heavy U.S. bombing in the 1970s, it’s been a huge help, village leaders said.

“It has helped (bring) change for many families,” said Sek Ouk, Bung Kriel’s 69-year-old village chief.

Look for more about Heifer Cambodia projects in upcoming issues of World Ark magazine.

Poultry and Veggies Make Life Better in Cambodia

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By: Somathy Prak, Networking and Resource Mobilization Manager, Heifer Cambodia

Sarom feeds her ducks.

Photo by: Prak Somathy, Courtesy of Heifer International

Sarom Chou and her husband live with their four children in Cambodia’s Wat Roka village. They once depended on rice production to support the family’s nutrition needs; However, the yield was just enough for home consumption. They began looking for alternatives to meet non-food needs. They opened a small grocery store in their village, which netted a very small profit. The family really wanted to raise chickens because they knew there was potential for earning money in a short amount of time, but their lack of knowledge and skills in this area made them hesitant.

In mid-2009, Heifer’s Women’s Empowerment and Holistic Community Development project started in Wat Roka. Heifer partnered with Aphiwat Srey (AS) to implement the project and encourage the community to work together toward food security and harmonization. When Sarom’s family learned about the project’s purpose, they joined the Sok Chamroeun women’s group and became one of 23 project families.

Through the project, the couple participated in a series of technical trainings, especially homestead gardening and poultry husbandry. They received 10 ducks (nine female and one male), horticulture seeds and fruit tree seedlings. They applied simple homestead garden development techniques and began planting vegetables, cassava, corn and other crops on unused land surrounding the house. Since using chicken manure compost, land quality has improved and vegetables and crops have produced good yields. As a result, the family enjoys improved nutrition and sells the surplus for additional income. Their 10 ducks have become a flock of dozens, which Sarom sells every three months. The family has built separate pens for baby, young adult and fattened ducks. They keep some duck eggs for hatching and sell some. This family, once hesitant to engage in poultry husbandry, raises seven hens and 37 chickens, as well.

“I use some money from selling vegetables and crops to buy rice bran for duck feed,” Sarom said. “My husband collects banana trees from villagers after they cut their fruits, then I chop them into small pieces and mix with rice bran to feed the ducks twice a day.”

Sarom and her husband spend most of their time working on the farm, and their children help run the grocery store after school. “I am happy with my ducks and working in my homestead garden,” Sarom said. “The yields from my farm inspire my family to work harder, even when they are tired. Before joining the project, we only had income from our small grocery shop, but now we have diversified income from homestead gardening and poultry that keeps increasing. We have enough money to invest in our children’s education. Many thanks to Heifer and AS for making my family’s dream come true.”

Cow Helps Georgia Family Heal after Armed Conflict

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Story and Photos by: Marina Kazaryan, Project Assistant, Heifer Georgia

Laura with her daughter Anano.

Laura with her daughter Anano.

Do you remember
The days of Karaleti,
The blue arch of mountains –
Unknown paradises?
~Galaktion Tabidze, Georgian poet

The village of Tkviavi is only 40 km away from Karaleti, so poetically described by Galaktion Tabidze, a famous Georgian poet. When Heifer Georgia first entered the region, the sky over the mountains was not so blue, but rather grey, both literally and figuratively. The armed Russia-Georgia conflict of August 2008 swept over the region and left the villages devastated.

“We had to hide in the fields for several days,” says Laura Kareli. “There was no one to take care of the cattle, and they just wandered away. We knew this was happening, but there was nothing we could do to stop them without endangering our lives.”

Like most families in the area, before the conflict, the Karelis were engaged in animal husbandry. When conditions changed, they had to adjust to the new environment. The family took up horticulture, requiring investments of fertilizer and equipment, which the family couldn’t afford. The harvest was poor and scarcely enough to provide a living for the family of seven.

When Laura’s husband Tamaz learned about Heifer’s project, he thought it was worth trying. The newly created association considered his case, and soon the Karelis had a new family member – a beautiful black cow. This was a turning point for the family. Their daily diet became enriched with milk and dairy products. With proper treatment, the cow started providing more milk, which the family sold to receive additional income. Their monthly income used to equal GEL (Georgian Lari) 150, or approximately $90. Today that amount has nearly tripled.

The Karelis improved their living conditions and paid for a connection to the central gas pipeline. Now, instead of a wood oven, they cook with a gas stove. Due to soggy firewood, which is expensive to begin with, and very little fuel, Laura used to spend a whole day cooking porridge for her children. “It was my dream to have gas to cook delicious food fast for my family. I have another dream – to have better heating in the house, since we have

Tsitsino takes care of the calf.

Tsitsino takes care of the calf.

very severe winters here, and there is not enough firewood to heat the entire house. We will try to save money from the sale of cheese and install gas heating also. Thank you for giving us a chance for a new and better life,” Laura said.

The Karelis’ cow delivered a calf, who lives with its mother in a shed. Both animals receive special care from Tamaz’s father Shota and mother Tsitsino. They look after the calf with great care and, in two years, will pass it on to another indigent family affected by the conflict.

Tamaz became an active member of the Farmers’ Association, and today he serves as its deputy chairman. Laura takes care of the household and their three children: sons Shota, 20, and Giga, 19, and daughter Anano, 4. Named after his grandfather, Shota Jr. is enlisted in the army. Both brothers want to continue their education. Anano attends kindergarten. She says the milk the cow produces is the best.

Wild Birds Improve Georgian Households

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Story and photos by Marina Kazaryan, project assistant, Heifer Georgia.

Pheasants.
As the legend has it, in the 5th centuryA.D. King Vakhtang I Gorgasali was hunting in the woods, when his falcon caughta pheasant. Fighting in the air, both birds fell into a spring nearby and diedbecause the water was boiling hot. Astonished by such unusual naturalphenomenon, King Vakhtang ordered to build a town around the hot springs. Thisis how Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia, came to life. Ever since, pheasants wereconsidered almost as a symbol. However today they are not as easily found inthe natural habitat. So much more curious it is to learn that in a village ofTeleti several kilometers away from Tbilisi there is a farm breeding the wildbirds.

The Laliashvilis family.
The Laliashvilis are a family of six: Tengiz (40),his wife Ekaterine (37), daughters Teona (18) and Nino (3), son Giorgi (5) andhis mother Zhenia (68). Today they are owners of a developing pheasant farm,being a part of Heifer project. The beginning wasn’t easy though.

Since early youth Tengiz prepared himself for amilitary career. He completed the obligatory military service at 18, and eversince has been in the army serving all around the country. “We wouldn’t see himfor years sometimes”, says his wife Ekaterine. In the last military conflict severalyears ago Tengiz was wounded in the region of heart and was released fromservice. It was then that he decided to start a pheasant farm.

Pheasant breeding is quite an innovative branch ofagriculture in Georgia, Tengiz had to study the habits of the birds, experimentwith food and propagation. But several species that he owned were not enoughfor full-fledged farming. Family’s scarce income which was received fromselling incubators of his own construction could not cover costs for forage andveterinary needs.

Pheasants in the volary.
When Tengiz learned about Heifer International’sactivities in Georgia, he immediately decided to join. Here, as in everythingelse, his wife whom he has known since school days stood by his side. WithHeifer’s assistance Tengiz established a Farmers’ Association. Five originalfamilies got 15 “families” of pheasants, each consisting of one male and threefemales, as well as forage and additional training. “In a short period of timeI became quite a celebrity”, says Tengiz laughing. “People would hear about apheasant farm and come to see it, first from the neighboring villages and thenfrom more distant regions”. Some came as tourists but many got interested inthis new field.

Tengiz near the incubator.
This year Tengiz has already started the firststage of giving away nestlings in the Pass on Gift tradition of Heifer, andmeanwhile he is already preparing the second generation of receiving families,provides them with training in pheasant breeding and helps building incubators.“It’s a new area and people are eager to get involved because it opens up newopportunities”, explains Tengiz. When correctly treated, pheasants grow quitelarge, have tasty meat and are profitable for sale. Tengiz already has severaloffers for purchase of pheasants. He also wants to prepare a certain part ofbirds for wild nature and release them into their natural environment to restoretheir traditionally large but today considerably decreased population.

Laliashvili’s elder daughter Teona became a studentof pharmaceutics last year, and their son Giorgi will go to school in theautumn. Their living standards have considerably improved, today they can allowthemselves heating and better products. The family has purchased a computerwhich is used for children’s education and for collecting more information onpheasants breeding and treatment. Tengiz built a complex of open-air cageswhere pheasant families can breed. In spring he plans to lay out a gardenaround the cages.

Tengiz with his children, taking care of the birds.
And it is not only economical conditions that haveimproved with the beginning of the project. “When I returned home after theinjury, poor income and unemployment were torturing me”, remembers Tengiz. “Istarted having serious psychological problems. Today I simply have no time for depression”.Everyone in the family have their part in the farm’s everyday life, from theyounger kids to the elderly granny who is very fond of their new inhabitants.Pheasant breeding consumes enough labour, keeping the entire family occupied.Birds must be fed, cages cleaned, eggs collected and you always have to keep aneye on new families to make sure the breeding goes the right way and does notspoil the pedigree.

“After all the difficulties we’ve been through,this farm returned Tengiz to the family”, says Ekaterine. “We will always be gratefulto Heifer International for giving us this opportunity to develop ourinitiative and making us even more united”.

Livestock and Training Help Fight HIV/AIDS

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Today is World AIDS Day. This year’s theme is “Getting to Zero,” with a commitment to zero new HIV infections, zero AIDS-related deaths and zero discrimination.

Our two-pronged strategy to help fight the HIV/AIDS pandemic, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, is to a) provide livestock to increase incomes so impoverished families can afford AIDS medication and b) teach sustainable farm methods integrating livestock with crop production to add protein to family diets so the AIDS medicine will be more effective.

Our work in the field has other positive effects that will help us “Get to Zero.” Watch these short videos to hear it directly from our participants.

Heifer Improves the Nutrition and Health of People Living with HIV/AIDS


Heifer Helps HIV/AIDS Orphans


Heifer Helps End Discrimination Against Survivors



Ugandan Family Moves From IDP Camp to Self-Reliance

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Story and photos by Dan Bazira


While many families in northern Uganda are still traumatized after 20 years of brutality by the Lord’s Resistance Army, Fred and Florence Otem have overcome this harrowing situation.

The couple lives in Coopee village, Bungatira Sub County in Gulu District in Uganda. They have three children: Atimango Winnie (10), Omony Phillip (8) and Ogik Simple (6). All of the children attend St. Martin Primary School in Lukome.

On life in the camp for internally displaced people (IDP)

Life was difficult during the war. I lost my relatives while young and dropped out of school since I had to be a caretaker for my five siblings. One day, I witnessed my relatives being scythed to death by the rebels. After being frustrated with my life, I decided to get a wife at the age of 17 years; this was to be a source for comfort,” Otema said. 

But to his surprise, this added more burden to him in terms of sustaining the two independent families: his and the one of his late father.

Being jobless and living in an IDP camp, his children were not going to school since he had no money to pay for their school materials.

We would eat one meal a day. Paying for hospital bills and clothing for the family was not easy. I had no hope of getting any monthly paying job. I tried to work on a per-day wage job as a potter at house construction sites, but the payment could not meet my family needs.

On the journey to self-reliance

Upon our return from the IDP camp in 2009, I developed an interest in a local women’s group that had established links with Heifer International in Uganda. I started going for training and preparing to receive an animal along with my wife. We had hope in this project in terms of changing our livelihood. 

Indeed God answered our prayer. We received a cow in March 2010, which had a calf and started milking. The cow gives us 22 liters (5.8 gallons) of milk per day. Today we are proud that we are no longer beggars of food and basic requirements, but we are donors within our community.

Thanks to Heifer, we earn $240 per month from milk sales. Imagine a poorly educated man like me earning that much per month! Today, our children go to better schools. We eat a very good and balanced diet. This job is easy to do, and we do it as a family.

My wife is an inspiration. 
Describing her husband, Florence said:

He is an understanding, loving and caring husband. He will never make decisions without involving us as a family, and with trainings received from Heifer Project International on family planning, we resolved to only have three children and provide for them up to university level. We currently opened up a joint savings account as a family, an indication of unity.

Living beyond the borders
To date, the family has more than 1,500 pine trees, 100 budded oranges and other varieties of fruit trees like avocado, jackfruit, tangerines and lemons. They also have harvested a lot of onions, which they expect to sell and earn more than $800 this year. The kitchen gardens around the home are a source of vegetables throughout the year, including selling in the local market and donating to those in need.

Florence said:

The use of energy saving stoves now saves my time because I no longer waste a lot of time looking for firewood. My husband now even helps in cooking food. Before it was difficult to convince him to cook food because he would complain of a lot of smoke from the traditional three stone cook stove. 

We suffered in the camp, entirely depending on relief aid, but today we move around the village mobilizing and training youths at no cost on sustainable agriculture practices because we do not want them suffer, too.

Looking forward

The future for this family is bright; they have already secured iron sheets to construct a permanent house and graduate from a semi-permanent house. They also intend to construct a domestic biogas plant for lighting and cooking after the permanent house construction. The family further intends to open up more land to grow vegetables and also increase their dairy herd. Many times when donations are given, it may appear to be meager, but the impact they bring to the families in terms of rebuilding their lives will never be regretted.

The family is grateful to Heifer International for the support. The Otema family is a living testimony of how Heifer ends hunger and poverty and cares for the Earth through sustainable approaches. “We thank Heifer International for having provided unto us this animal and the psycho-social support that has helped us forget the past and focus upon the future,” concluded Otema. 

Heifer Project Brings Prosperity and Peace to Malawi

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While preparing to receive dairy cattle, Heifer project participants were made fun of by doubting neighbors. Two years later, these successful farmers foster peace and share knowledge with those who mocked them.