Theresa Sumo, a 35-year-old mother of 9 children, lives in Horton’s Farm community in Kakata, Margibi County. She was a cassava farmer and a day labourer struggling with providing for her family before she joined BRAC Ultra-Poor Graduation (UPG) programme.
“Life has been challenging for me and my family over the years. Finding food for my nine children and sending them to school has left me at the mercy of God and my relatives,” she states.
Upon getting selected into the UPG programme, Theresa was trained in farming pigs and producing soaps. She was given 3 pigs as main assets along with raw materials for soap making (as supporting assets). She was also provided with a weekly stipend of 980 LD (5.00 USD) from the programme through the Village Savings and Loan Association (VSLA). The programme has also supported her with construction materials to build a pig pen. Equipped with the training that she has received, she started her journey as a pig farmer.
The 2 female pigs that she had received farrowed 18 piglets together. Furthermore, she is also making 2000 LD (10.00 USD) as net profit from her soap making business. This has enabled her to pay her children’s school fees and food. She is now hoping to generate enough money to build a house for her family.
“I’m so proud of myself that I could come this far. I always felt like a nobody but I am now recognised in my community for my success. I’m grateful to BRAC for bringing this programme to my community and helping us,” she says. Moving forward, she plans to extend her farm and her soap making business, build her new house and send her children to good schools so that they can also become successful in the future.
