16 SAHAS – our fight against modern slavery
Standing tall in the face of adversities – Bina, a young entrepreneur Bina (19 years, name changed) lives with her family in a rural village in Nuwakot district. When she was 17, her father passed away putting the responsibility of sustaining the household on Bina. Forced to drop out of school, she began working as a farm labourer in the fields nearby. “I suffered a lot physically as my body couldn’t do so much work. I had to bend down all day planting seedlings or lifting heavy sacks of grain. My body would hurt everywhere. However, I had to work as the income from agriculture at home wasn’t sufficient.” Soon after, her brother was diagnosed with a stomach tumour changing Bina’s family circumstances once again. The family were forced to take a loan for his medical treatment, so she had to work even longer hours to repay this. In 2019, during a household visit CLAMP staff and a Youth Change Agent (YCA) encouraged Bina to resume her education, as she was identified to be at high risk of modern slavery. Bina was apprehensive about starting study again, as it had been a few years since she had dropped out. However, she expressed her interest in livelihood training, as she thought this could help build her skills to become financially independent. After
discussions with the ward office and Beneficiaries Feedback Committee, and consultation with Bina and her family, she was selected for the goat-rearing training - part of the livelihood skills development programme under the CLAMP project. She shares, “I never knew that rearing goats could make me an entrepreneur and not just merely a shepherd.” Upon finishing the training, she sought help from local community members to build a
