Jagan Soren is a 42-year-old man who is from a small village called Milanchowk of Jahada Rural Municipality, Morang district which is in the southern part of Nepal. He has become a role model in his community by turning the wheels of his fate through determination and hard work.
A few months ago, Jagan and his wife Bitio could hardly earn their daily bread and had to send their two children to bed hungry most of the time. From that poverty-stricken situation, his family now has a home to stay, a grocery shop for income, and savings in a cooperative.
He said, “One day I heard about a training program on the topic of “start and improve your business: arranged by Brethren in Community Welfare Society (BIC). At that time, I was struggling with our financial condition and was looking for a way out. So, I decided to participate in the training, which ultimately became the turning point of my life”. Jagan has no cultivable land except a small piece of land where he has a small house.
Jagan spent five years overseas but could not save money. “I worked as a labor and the salary I earned in Saudi Arabia was even not enough to feed my family”, Says Jagan. Two years ago, when he returned home, he was optimistic to get a job so that he could stay with his family. But things went opposite direction than his plan. So he was planning to go overseas, but again, the COVID-19 pandemic became a barrier.
And that time all the source of earning closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown. “I used to get daily wage work sometimes that also stopped due to the pandemic, and it had made our life very difficult” says Jagan remembering those days.
But when Brethren In Community Welfare Society organized an Entrepreneurship Development Training for people like Jagan, it changed his life. “I have received proper training on how to start a small business in 5 days Entrepreneurship Development Training. It helped me to make a business plan for a grocery store and got 70 thousand loans for the shop” said Jagan happily.
Jagan in his grocery shop 
Cooperative Share certificate of Jagan
Jagan turned his dream of being with family in the reality with the help of BIC. “I am making 4 hundred to 3 thousand profit daily and planning to maximize it”, says Jagan. He is also started saving the money in a cooperative where he gets 13% interest on his saving. “My family and I are happy with the income from the grocery store, and it’s been a life-changing way for me,” Jagan said weighting the potato for the customer. He says he now learnt the way of making money.
“Like Jagan, more than 12 ultra-poor families in Jahada have changed their fortune and now have the ability to maintain a decent life and can afford education for their children.
The chairman of Jahada Rural Municipality Kailsha Prasad Mandal said that it is the responsibility of the government to uplift the lives of the ultra-poor and BIC is also complementing the government by making its best efforts to uplift the lives of ultra-poor people.
