Empowering India's Rural Poor through Poultry

Dear Friend of Shivia,

We are delighted to report that 2014 has been a fantastic year for Shivia. We have expanded our Livelihood Programme in West Bengal, changing the lives of even more impoverished families in the region.  Of course, our success is largely due to the generosity of our donors, so we thank everyone who has supported us this year.

Creating improved livelihoods

Our Livelihood Programme comprises two home farming enterprises, which we offer to families who are living below the international poverty line (USD $1.25 per day).  Our Poultry Development Service (PDS), which we launched in 2011, has been growing successfully this year and we are now operating in four locations in rural villages surrounding Kolkata. During this year alone, nearly 2,000 families have benefitted from the programme and started their own back-yard poultry farm, working their way out of poverty to a better quality of life. Our follow up assessments give a very real picture of what is happening to the families we work with. Typically, household incomes are increasing by 30% – parents are able to buy better food and clothes for their children or even schoolbooks and uniforms so that they can attend school for the first time. We have seen school attendance rates increase, particularly amongst girls, which is a very positive and encouraging outcome.

Boosting income

On a recent visit to our operations in the field, Shivia’s founder Olly Donnelly once again witnessed the PDS in action and heard, at first hand, about how the programme is actually changing people’s lives. Take for example Amit, a 28-year-old father of eight who, until April this year, had no regular source of income. Amit heard about Shivia’s newly opened PDS operation in Sundia and was immediately enthused by the opportunity to start his own poultry enterprise. From his initial purchase of one poultry toolkit comprising 10 one-day old chicks, vaccinations, feed and training, he has developed a thriving business with over 50 chickens which he takes to Kolkata to sell at higher prices than he can achieve locally. He now has a regular income for his family and can care for his ill father – and he wants to expand his farm to at least 500 chickens in the future. He says, “I want to become a large poultry farm owner to educate my son and send him to the city for a high paying job”. He does not want his children to suffer the same conditions as he and his brother had to undergo during their childhood.

Inspiring permanent change

And there are plenty of other stories just like Amit’s. We are particularly pleased to see so many women managing their own new enterprise in poultry farming which has given them increased standing both at home and in the local community. But the added value of poultry farming is that the whole family can be involved and learn how to raise healthy chickens, from the youngest children to the ageing grandparents. In addition, Hindus, Muslims and Christians all eat chicken meat and eggs, so it really is a marketable product in West Bengal, as well as a source of food for the whole family.

This year also saw the launch of our second livelihood enterprise in Agricultural Management Services (AMS). This service provides groups of farmers with rigorous theoretical and practical training in the System of Rice Intensification (SRI), an alternative rice cultivation method, which reduces production costs and increases yield. So far 100 farmers have joined the programme and the results of their new knowledge was clear to see when we were shown acres of lush paddy fields during our November 2014 field visit.

We look forward to reporting more good news from Shivia in 2015, which means more impoverished families in West Bengal will be empowered to work their way out of poverty and change their lives forever.

We hope you will continue to follow our progress and witness positive social change in one of the world’s poorest regions. Thank you.