For years, Nga worried about how she would provide for her family.
Living in Siem Reap, Cambodia, Nga is a wheelchair user after contracting polio as a child. Her child also lives with polio, meaning both require daily support. With much of his time spent assisting the family, her husband had little opportunity to earn a reliable income.
Determined to contribute, Nga sold vegetables and cut water hyacinths for sale. The work was physically demanding, irregular and brought in only a small income, leaving the family uncertain about the future.
Everything began to change when she joined the Metta Karuna Centre’s Empowering Capacity project, supported by Jesuit Mission.
Recognising her strengths
Through workshops based on the Asset Based Community Development (ABCD) approach, Nga was encouraged to recognise not only the challenges she faced, but also the strengths, skills and resources she already possessed.
“I am very happy to know that I have the resources and capabilities to help myself and my family through cooking, planting crops, feeding chickens, running my business, and handling other small tasks,” she says.
With practical training, encouragement and small business support, Nga established a stable home business that no longer relies on physically demanding work.
She has expanded the goods she sells, started raising chickens for additional income and is making plans to further grow her business.
“I am very happy to know that I have the resources and capabilities to help myself and my family.”
Nga
A family transformed
The changes have also transformed life for her family. With Nga earning a more reliable income from home, her husband has been able to seek employment outside the home, strengthening the family’s financial security and independence.
Fr Jinhyuk SJ says the project is about recognising the gifts that already exist within every person and every community.
“By building on people’s existing strengths and capabilities, we are helping create more inclusive communities where people with disabilities can live with dignity, contribute their talents and shape their own futures.”
Through the generosity of our supporters, we are helping local partners accompany women like Nga as they build sustainable livelihoods, strengthen their families and create lasting change in their communities.
