In Rajpur Lokaya, located in the far west of Nepal, he has been engaged in commercial farming for the past two years, receiving training from the local government.
Rokaya, from Ward 5 of Ramaroshan Municipality, dreamed of becoming an entrepreneur and registered an agricultural company. The local government provided intensive training in agriculture and sock manufacturing, which also benefited 21 other women.
Rokaya, a farmer who grows seasonal vegetables, is not happy.
“I have been producing all kinds of seasonal vegetables. I worked hard but there was no market and most of the crops rotted,” she said.
She has now turned to another profession: “I have started weaving carpets, sweaters and kadas, the traditional Nepali scarves.”
“I brought raw materials from Dhangadhi to make scarves and hoped the local government would buy them. But that didn’t happen,” Rokaya said.
“The local government has provided entrepreneurial training to women, but their products are not available in the market. The local government has also ignored the products made by women,” she said.
She cannot even set up a shop as she lives in a village far from residential areas and has no transport to transport her goods to Mangal Seng and Sanphebagar, the main markets in the district.
Sarashothi Kunwar of Vannigadi in Jayagadh Municipal Corporation runs a handmade socks manufacturing business.
She started producing socks a year ago but is still facing a market shortage.
She received a grant for machinery from the Jayagadh Municipal Corporation, but her business is not going as expected due to lack of interest from people in local products.
“People buy imported clothes and shoes no matter how expensive they are. Local products are ignored. It is difficult to convince them about their durability and quality,” Kunwar said. “Some people say that products and goods made by women are not good.”
Kunwar had hoped to expand and hire employees if the company was successful, but he changed his plans.
Nisha Bista, 20, a resident of Manggalseng City’s Ward 4, raises goats.
A bachelor’s student, she has registered her business with the Ministry of Cottage Industries and owns 25 goats.
“I always felt the need to become an independent woman. My family used to keep a few goats but they weren’t making any profit. So, at my family’s suggestion, I set up a company and increased the number of goats,” she said.
Vista looks after the animals with the help of her family, and she heard about a grant for entrepreneurs.
“I went to many places. I received no support except for a little help from the Agriculture Knowledge Centre and NGOs.”
Bista visited the local office multiple times but was ignored.
“The local government won’t subsidise me because they’re afraid that I’m a woman, I’ll get married and my business won’t last.”
There is also a shortage of pasture for grazing goats.
Indira Regmi Adhikari, president of Acham’s Women Entrepreneurs’ Association, said subsidies and other assistance given in the name of women entrepreneurs are being given to political leaders and people close to government officials through forged documents.
According to the association, local people do not consume locally produced goods because they do not trust women entrepreneurs.
“It’s not easy to do business. We need investment, manpower, raw materials and machinery. Despite all our hard work, people don’t trust our products,” Adhikari said.
There are companies and industries registered in the names of women but they are not run by women. Adhikari said tax exemptions on industrial registration, ease of access to bank loans and other subsidies provided to women are being misused in the name of women.
According to the association, 82 women from Mangalsen, Kamalbazar and Vinayak areas of the district are engaged in small scale industries and businesses.
“We have decided to come together to bring all women entrepreneurs together at one place and create awareness. The local government is ignoring women who are doing business in rural areas,” Adhikari said.
