Success Story

As a small girl, Shree Maya Tamang, now 18, lost her father and had to drop out of school. With ETC scholarship support, she rejoined her class and graduated from high school. For a girl from a "backward" ethnic group to graduate was a great achievement, but not enough for Shree Maya. With ETC's continued help she is studying to become an agricultural extension agent, a qualification that is much in demand. Soon she will be able to help farmers feed their families and earn income. In overcoming the adversity of her early life, Shree Maya says ETC "poured water on my drought-striken life." 

Ram Maya, 31, is a low-caste Nepali woman. A mother of three, she usually works 15 hours a day. Ram Maya began literacy classes initiated by ETC's Women's Development Program, and with her classmates, formed a group that has begun savings and loan programs, health education, agricultural training, and small business development. With her new sense of empowerment Ram Maya says, "Because of ETC and the women's group, my life is better now. I know which vegetables are nutritious and about vitamins. I can earn some money to pay my children's school fees. I don't want my children to have my life; I want them to have a better life."