“On a daily basis, I am able to collect 7-9 eggs, which I use to prepare meals for my family. In addition, I can sell some of the eggs to earn extra income.”
In Dongpeuay Village, Khammouan Province, we found a rice farmer named Khamphong. Known for her activeness and determination to uplift her family and the community, we selected her as a village volunteer to help disseminate information about preventive measures during the challenging period of the Covid-19 pandemic. Due to her outstanding efforts in the last program, APL+, as part of the CiSAC project, handpicked her as one of the model families to take part in our livelihood recovery initiative, which focuses on chicken-rearing.
Upon joining the program, Mrs. Khampang received comprehensive training on the care and management of laying hens. Additionally, she was provided with various equipment necessary for chicken rearing, including 10 laying hens, 20 meters of netting, 2 sacks of feed, 2 sacks of husks, vitamin supplements, a waterer, and a feeder.
Following the implementation of the program, periodic follow-up visits were conducted to assess the progress of the model family. During these visits, it became evident that Mrs. Khamphong’s family had succeeded in raising chickens. She said “On a daily basis, I am able to collect 7-9 eggs, which I use to prepare meals for my family. In addition, I can sell some of the eggs to earn extra income.”
During our last follow-up visit, which was conducted last month, we were really surprised to see that Mrs. Khamphong had taken the initiative to further invest in her chicken-rearing project. She had bought a rooster to mate with their hens in order to reproduce. When asked about her motivation, she answered “The impressive daily egg output of my hens inspired me to invest in a rooster for breeding, and I have successfully hatched two new chicks since then.” In our last conversation, she told us “I plan to give the upcoming batch of hatched chickens to interested families or to the local school as a contribution to the lunch program for kids.”
The egg-laying chicken program, led by APLPlusLaos through the CiSAC project, aims to promote community livelihoods by ensuring food security and generating sustainable income. Through the CISAC project, 20 local associations like APL+ are helping families and communities recover from the negative health and economic impacts of COVID.