Turning Skills into Prosperity: Empowering Women Entrepreneurs in Belauri

"It makes us happy to see the fruits of training being implemented," says Naresh Prasad Bhatta, Employment Coordinator and SIYB (Start and Improve Your Business) Facilitator for Belauri Municipality, Sudurpachim.

Naresh and Dipa Raut, an Entrepreneur Development coordinator, attended a 10-day SIYB Training of Trainers (ToT) in Dhangadhi. The training, conducted under the Empowered Women, Prosperous Nepal (EWPN) program led by the ILO in collaboration with the Ministry of Social Development, aimed to equip participants with essential entrepreneurial skills to empower local women entrepreneurs.

Following their training, the ILO and Belauri Municipality organized an SIYB session in Belauri-5, Attariya, where 22 women from the community participated. Many of these women were involved in vegetable farming and traditional tapari (leaf plate) production but lacked the knowledge to transform their work into sustainable, profit-oriented businesses.

One of the participants, Phulkumari Rana, had been a vegetable farmer for years but never saw it as a potential business. "Through the training, I learned the importance of setting profit margins, practicing seasonal farming, and understanding market demands," she shared. "I was earning just enough to get by, but now I know how to calculate profits, save, and expand my business."

The impact of the training was immediate and transformative. Women in the community who were engaged in tapari production received tapari-making machines from the municipality. With renewed confidence and skills, they are now planning to market their products across Dhangadhi, aiming to generate greater income and improve their livelihoods.

Under the EWPN program—a collaborative effort between the Government of Nepal, the European Union, and the United Nations—the ILO capacitated province and municipal government trainers who now mobilize their funds to deliver business development support to budding and existing entrepreneurs from local communities, as well as referees from EWPN partner agencies. The Naresh Bhatta and Dipa Raut trainer were used by UN Women to train vegetable farmers on SIYB with backstopping from an ILO master trainer. 

With their newfound entrepreneurial skills, they are not only changing their own lives but setting an inspiring example for future generations of women entrepreneurs in Sudurpaschim.