“Now I do not pass the night without food and my other family members can eat full meals at night…nights without food are gone from our lives, we are happy.”

Rejeya Khatun is from Naopara, a village in the Meherpur district of Bangladesh. She was born and grew up in a lower middle class family. Her father, a farmer, was the only family member earning an income. Her parents had wanted to educate their daughter, but were unable to, due to their financial situation. They therefore arranged for her a marriage to a young man in their village. Rejeya’s new husband was not yet employed, and struggled to put food on the table. Rejeta wanted to improve her situation, and so sought out her friend’s advice.

After hearing Rejeya’s story, her friend Morjina Khatun, a trained Hunger Project ‘Animator’, advised Rejeya to get involved with a Hunger Project-organised course and she participated in a six-month sewing and tailoring training. During the training period, with the help of her husband, she started to take work orders for small jobs. After completing her training she began to work full-time with the support of her village.

Rejeya’s business became very popular in her village and her customer base continued to grow. Soon, other unemployed women who were struggling to feed their families came to her for help and advice. Rejeya began to train them in sewing and tailoring and so they too were able to earn a living for their families. Rejeya has not limited her work to tailoring; she also raises animals for meat and dairy, and grows vegetables in her garden.

Since becoming involved with The Hunger Project in her village, Rejeya has a regular income and her family no longer struggles to find food. She is now an active member of various organisations in her community.

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