Nilphamari:Khadiza Begum, a resilient woman from a remote village in Nilphamari's Jaldhaka upazila, has turned an abandoned plot of land into a flourishing garden of exotic fruits, rebuilding her life through farming following the death of her husband.
According to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, after losing her husband in 2014, Khadiza faced the daunting task of supporting her family and managing her husband's business while raising two children. Despite the challenges, she found strength in adversity and began transforming the overgrown land beside her home into a productive garden.
Encouraged by her elder son, Khadiza cleared the land in 2018 and started cultivating dragon fruit, rambutan, and avocado. Over time, she expanded her garden to include a variety of exotic fruits and unconventional crops. Her experience and interest in farming led her to introduce coffee cultivation, planting approximately 680 coffee plants in 2019. The initial harvest proved successful, prompting the Department of Agricultural Extension to provide her with improved coffee seedlings and processing machinery.
Khadiza's garden not only yields fruits but also serves as a symbol of new possibilities. She has achieved notable success with rambutan cultivation, earning around Taka 350,000 from a few plants last season. Her diverse garden includes cocoa, avocado, passion fruit, and other exotic crops, which she sells in local markets and through online platforms.
Khadiza's efforts have been recognized at the national level, earning her awards in fish farming and a certificate as a safe food producer. The Deputy Commissioner of Nilphamari, Mohammad Nairuzzaman, has praised her entrepreneurial spirit and support has been extended to her in the form of a coffee processing machine and arrangements for a low-interest bank loan. Her name has also been nominated for the Begum Rokeya Padak, acknowledging her remarkable achievements in agriculture.