Seeds of Hope initiative

In Indrawati, a remote mountain region seven hours north of Kathmandu on the Tibet border, HDFA’s Seeds of Hope initiative is helping to alleviate poverty by empowering poor families to establish new commercial crops. 

We want these families to be able to afford to send their children to school, to break the illiteracy-poverty cycle and tackle the risks of child marriage and human trafficking which are endemic to the region.

High yield, high nutrition

Mushrooms, tomatoes and citrus fruits have been specially identified as nutritious, high yield crops with good local market demand, suited to the hilly terrain.

A successful pilot program has demonstrated the potential of these new mini farms. 

More than 100 small citrus orchards have already been planted. We have also helped 200 of the poorest families establish greenhouses to grow a greater variety of all-season crops to feed their families.

The next phase involves rolling out mushroom plots and beginning to build in micro-financing to achieve a ripple effect and give more families the capacity to farm commercially and earn a more significant income.

Much more than food in bellies

These farms will do more than put food in hungry bellies; they will give families who are barely scraping by a proper livelihood.

The new skills will be shared among the community as other families see the value of new cash crops. From these initial seeds of hope, a healthy community and new agri-industry can grow.

When families thrive, children thrive

Ultimately, Seeds of Hope wants to put kids in school by helping families become secure and healthy enough to support their children’s education. 

The alternative is keeping children home to work, leaving them vulnerable to trafficking into bonded labour or sexual slavery – all too common in this region and made worse by the devastating earthquake of 2015. Through Seeds of Hope we are planting the possibility of a brighter future.