SALMA AFROSE back from Thakurgaon Sadhona Rani Baysha, an ethnic woman in Thakurgaon, has changed her life only by switching over to a more profitable trade.  Wife of Tapan Baysha of Bashmalipara village under Garea union in Thakurgaon sadar upazila now earns more to supplement the income of her family. “I can earn Tk1000 per month by raising chicken of local breed. It was impossible a few months ago when I had to maintain my family by selling bamboo products. My husband is a day labourer and I have four children,” she said.  Tulsi Rani Baysha of the same village, who has also taken up similar project, said: “We sell hens to the wholesalers, locally known as paikers. We sell our chickens to paikers by holding auctions to get better price.” The ethnic women, who did not have market access, are getting the facility under a project titled ‘Premdip’ (Promotion Rights for Ethnic Minority and Dalits Improvement Programme), implemented by Eco-Social Development Organisation (ESDO) and Gram Bikash Kendra and financing by HEKS with technical assistance from Practical Action, Bangladesh.  Some 2400 ethnic people of Thakurgaon, Dinajpur, Naogaon, Joypurhat and Nilphamari districts are the target group of the project.
 Samsut Tabriz, market development officer of ESDO (Value Chain), Thakurgaon, said: “We facilitate and establish link between the target groups and local market. We help the ethnic groups establish link with Pragati hatcheries for buying chickens. Wholesalers come to the community level and we ensure the real price for the product after verifying market.”  Akhter Hossain, agriculture officer of ESDO (Value Chain), said: “We develop link with livestock service provider, feed companies, hatcheries, eggs collectors for the ethnic groups.” Wholesaler Al-Amin of Garea union of Thakurgaon sadar upazila, said: “We collect the hens from the village after making contact with the ethnic groups and then send those to Dhaka. Sometimes, I have to count losses, but I can make up the loss as I get large supply of hens.”
 About 40 ethnic families are engaged in local chicken farming at Bashmalipara village along with their traditional work of producing bamboo goods.
  “The demand for bamboo products is reducing due to increased use of plastic products. So, we have to face trouble maintaining our family. Chicken farming has made a difference in our life. Now, we are sending our children to schools and longing of a better life,” Sumila Baysha, of the village, said.
  “I get vaccine and other medicines from Paravet, a livestock service provider, and I can also do this job myself as the agency gives us training in this regard,” said Tulsi.
 “The ethnic community people are also being provided with cattle after offering them seasonal loan. They are provided with loan for buying cattle and after selling cattle they have to repay the loan,” said Gausul Azam, market development field officer of Practical Action.
 Pirina Kha Kha, wife of Ilias Tiggya of Bhatgaon village under Awliapur union of Thakurgaon sadar upazila, said: “I have bought one cattle after getting Tk25,000 as loan. I sold the cattle after four months and earned a profit of Tk6000. Later, I took loan of Tk50,000 and bought two cattle. I will sell the cattle next month and hope to get more profit. My elder son will appear in SSC examination after one year and the younger one reads in class-VI. I will save the money to meet my children educational expenses.”
 But, Prinina said, she has no land to cultivate napier grass.
 In Bhatgaon village, the Oraon women are engaged in farming cattle after getting seasonal loan. They fatten the cattle after feeding those with napier grass, UMS (urea molasses straw) or feed and sell the animal after four months.   “In the traditional cattle rearing process one has to wait one to one and a half years to sell their cattle, but in this process one can sell cattle after four months, which is profitable for them”, Monowar Hossain, market development officer of Gram Bikash Kendra, said.
 Jashmina Panna, wife of Manuel Means, said: “We have received loan after forming a committee. First, I have bought one cow; after selling the cattle I will buy two more. And I hope to get further loan.”   “When the cows are ready for sale we usually arrange auction for the paikers in presence of local union parishad chairman and members. The paikers buying the cattle through participation in the bidding,” she said.  Some of the oraon women show eagerness to buy four cows as they see huge profit by selling the cows after four months.
  “One cattle needs 100kg feed --Meat More -- and we supply the feed to every beneficiary’s home with our own initiative. We give them the feed at a price lower than market rate as we get buyers collectively as well as the clients get feed without any hassle”, said Sarafat Hossain, dealer of ACI Godrej Agrovet Private Limited.
  The ethnic community people also formed Rural Sales and Service Centre (RSCC) at Phulbari of Dinajpur as it serves as an alternative market for the poor, who have no market access. It is the transaction centre for produce and services. The RSCC is facilitating access to quality inputs. Executive committee members of RSSC monitor the work. Thus it becomes a platform of group representatives or joint business of poor people. All of them become partner of the business.  The feed sellers supply their feed, the Paravet supply vaccine to the target groups through the RSSC. Thus it becomes a participatory market, said Gausul Azam, market development field officer of Practical Action.
 Namita Mardi, a member of executive committee of RSCC, said: “We used to work as a day labourer before, now we earn money sitting here as all the partners pay commission. We have some agriculture inputs which we lease out and can earn money.”
  Sohel Rana, divisional head of ACI Godrej (marketing), said “The actual price of one sack of feed is Tk850, but we give the feed to the target groups at Tk820 as we have many clients”.  Deepak Pramanik, paravet at Phulbari of Dinajpur, said: “We fix a date for vaccination of the cattle of the beneficiaries and on this date we bring vaccine from district livestock office. On the date, the ethnic group along with mainstream people brings their cattle for vaccination. We take Tk5 as service charge for each cattle as we have to buy the vaccine.”
 Mukhi Baski, wife of Mantu Tudu of Basudevpur village in Phulbari upazila, said: “We have insurance for our cattle paying Tk175 as monthly premium”.  The Executive Director of ESDO, Md Shahid Uz Zaman, said: “For the advancement of the community we consider the work as our social responsibility. The ethnic community and the mainstream people have to work together for the advancement of the society as ethnic people have contribution in our society. The main problem of plain land ethnic people is that they are landless. To protect them from land grabbers is a challenge for us.”    “If the government ban on import of cow continues at least five lakh people will come out of extreme poor bracket,” he said. Anik Asad, country director of HEKS, said: “As the Dalit community has no financial access we provide them the service. I think value chain approach will bring benefit for them. Major objectives of the Access to Market and Social Inclusion of Minorities Project are to raise productivity, improve access to market of selected value chains of ethnic people by capacity enhancement, access to business services in selected value chains such as beef fattening, strengthen linkages among value chain actors by enhancing the diapraxis between ethnic and mainstream community.”