My name is Lema Labalo, and I am a proud member of Yididiya Enterprise, a small horticulture group I run with four of my friends. Together, we are five determined individuals with big dreams for our families and community.
Before joining Education for Sustainable Development (ESD), life was not easy. Providing for our children and meeting daily expenses felt like an endless challenge. We had the will to work, but we lacked the skills, resources, and opportunities.
That changed when ESD gave us the tools to transform our lives. We received life skills and business skills trainings, which taught us how to plan, manage, and grow a business with confidence. Then came the start-up support: seedlings, a water pump, agricultural tools, work clothes, and proper shoes for farming. These were more than materials they were the foundation of a new beginning.
Since then, our journey has been inspiring. We are now planting for the third season, and each harvest brings greater success. Every time we sell our cabbage harvest, we earn between 50,000 and 80,000 ETB. With this income, we are able to cover our living expenses, send our children to school, and even save for the future.
Most of us are married and raising children, and for the first time, we can say we are living with dignity and self-sufficiency. The income from our enterprise has not only improved our lives financially but has also brought us happiness, hope, and confidence.
Today, I stand proud knowing that we are not just farmers we are entrepreneurs building a better future for our families. And it all started because ESD believed in us, trained us, and gave us the chance to grow.
I am deeply grateful for this journey, and I know the seeds planted by ESD will continue to bear fruit for years to come.