Humaira’s story

A Community Development Success Story

In her own words, Humaira tells her story and how CDP has helped her children’s education.

I was born in 1957 in a poor family in Qezil village. My father arranged my engagement with my husband Ahmad when I was 9 years old. It was common to engage girls before they reach puberty in the village or even in the country. My husband was from TarteJar village. After marriage, he took me to his village too.

When I was 13 years old I delivered a girl. Right now I have 9 children 4 daughters and 5 boys. My eldest daughter is 22 and married. My eldest son is 19 years old, and has gone to Iran to make some money for his family.  Both of my eldest children are illiterate. My other child is 5 years old. He is a student, but sometimes he goes to school and sometimes he doesn’t go to school.

Changing the Cycle

My second daughter is 13 years old. I don’t really want to marry her until she reaches puberty. She is studying for 4th class. I hope she will become an educated girl and get paid by the governor in the future. Indeed, a few years ago we were indifferent about sending the girls to school, but now we try and wish for them to be literate. My small children are going to school as well and I hope for them to become literate and have a better future.

My husband is a very good person. When we married he was selling flour and animals. But now he is labouring and loading and unloading people’s things. He can get 100-150Afs per day ($2-3 USD). I can weave rugs and I also know embroidery, but for 8 years I have not been feeling well, therefore, I can’t do any work. My son sends money from Iran and we use that money for my treatments and for supplying the daily needs. I wake up early in the morning, I pray, and then I bake bread and bring water at home.

We thank CDP for repairing the pipeline from the Hinduyak spring and for the electric light project in the village. I sweep and brush away the house dirt and I wash the clothes and give baths to the children. I have two goats. My small child takes the goats out to feed. He likes to take the goats out for feeding and he prefers feeding the goats to going to school. The village has electricity in the evenings now from a generator. My children do homework under the light. We have drinkable water. It comes from the Hinduyak baba’s spring. The CDP project also distributed mosquito nets for the people in Myandara Valley, and now, no one gets malaria.

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Categories: Community Development, Stories