The Goat Trust:
Observations from the Field
I thought that the women would tell me that being a Pashu Sakhi brought more money into their household and that they felt more empowered because of it, but their answers were more nuanced.
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hey explained that becoming Pashu Sakhis gave them unique identities within their villages. They shared that before, people knew them as someone’s mother or wife. Now their identities are based on their merit as individuals. They are seen as more than mothers or neighbors and feel that they have a skill that is not only unique to them but is also an asset within their community.
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The Goat Trust introduces hope. Hope, in the sense that it gives people dreams for the future. People in rural villages live day to day. Many of the girls I spoke to go to school, but they expect to grow into a life where they will get married, leave their home village, and take on the same domestic responsibilities as their mothers––although none of the girls I talked about were eager to be married.
The girls I met were curious. They loved practicing their English with me and sharing what they learned in school that day––everything from biology to multiplication tables. While we can count The Goat Trust’s value by the number of Pashu Sakhis trained or the increase in household incomes, the true value of the Goat Trust cannot be measured because it comes in the form of dreams that women and girls might not have otherwise. When I talked to women in the villages, The Goat Trust employees and I were the first to ask them or their children what they wanted for their futures. Many of them didn’t understand what that meant. Back at the office, we contemplated what dreams are, and how to share them with the people we worked with.
We prompted them with potential futures: more goats, training, and income. In time, they told us they’d like to expand their landholdings, the number of farmers they work with, their unique skills, etc. Children are receptive; I was inspired to realize that the next generation of girls saw the Pashu Sakhis as role models. When I spoke with them, their future aspirations were grounded in their love of learning and observations of their mothers and aunties. When they grew up, they wanted to become doctors, and teachers, and some even expressed interest in becoming Pashu Sakhis.
Similarly, but not surprisingly, I was moved by the female employees at the Goat Trust. Rita and Kavita, whom I got to know very well after living with them, opened up to me about how The Goat Trust has transformed their lives and sense of self. The Goat Trust has given them exposure and freedom to work away from home. In the process, they have gained experience and confidence that will propel them into any career they decide to pursue.
The Goat Trust's employees' lives are transformed by their work.
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They are passionate about TGT’s mission and committed to empowering the women in the communities where they work every day. As a recent college graduate, it’s rare for my peers to be very enthusiastic about their vocations. Many of them work in offices or at home carrying out
monotonous tasks. At TGT I was left speechless by employees, my age, who are deeply passionate about their work, and who have a vision for a future that gives women and girls the opportunities to
I spent a week at The Goat Trust (TGT), an NGO based out of Lucknow that teaches women in rural Uttar Pradesh (UP) to become Pashu Sakhis. A Pashu Sakhi, is someone with livestock knowledge and the skills to advise farmers. The Goat Trust trains Pashu Sakhis who specialize in goats. In rural UP, raising goats provides additional income for families. It is often the women’s responsibility on top of their more traditional roles within the household: raising children, cooking, cleaning, and washing clothes.
The Goat Trust selects ambitious women for the Pashu Sakhi training who have more time throughout their day to devote to the Pashu Sakhi vocation. Many Pashu Sakhis don’t have small children at home, for example.
The Goat Trust enables women to be entrepreneurial and provide a service to their peers while enhancing the availability of resources to keep goats in this region healthy; therefore allowing the goats to remain a valuable asset to families. Pashu Sakhis not only treat the goat’s illnesses but also provide forums for farmers to discuss their experiences and perform complex procedures including artificial insemination for breeding.
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Their stories echoed one another. The Pashu Sakhi’s are all independent, driven women––a prerequisite for the position, I presume––with adequate support networks to pursue more work outside of the household. Many of them were previously familiar with goats either owning or trading them before they became Pashu Sakhis.
guide themselves to lead the lives they want, rather than having them chosen for them. I would like to formally thank Arun for arranging my stay, and for providing incredible insights on the importance of investing in systems that not only empower women but also that remain long after the initial intervention. Thank you for reminding me that we can’t always make everyone happy. Creating lasting change requires a broader lens and foresight to see how the systems we create will benefit communities for generations to come.
Rita Devi
Pashu Sakhi Profile
Rita Devi is one of the strongest, most resilient people I have ever met. She is a single mother of two young girls. After she left her husband, she didn’t have enough money to support her family on her own. She has always raised goats as a form of income, but The Goat Trust provided her with more opportunities so that she can provide for her girls on her own. Many women in rural UP rely heavily on their husbands to make money, while their responsibilities largely remain at home. For Rita Devi to not only remove herself and her girls from an unhealthy marriage but also to continue to raise and provide for them on her own is a testament to both her strength and the opportunities The Goat Trust has created to empower women like her.
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Rita Devi completed the Pashu Sakhi training about a year ago and now provides services to other farmers. Becoming a Pashu Sakhi gave her an identity that wasn’t influenced by her past but rather that was her own.
Recently, Rita Devi also stepped up to become a CMI; she works with women farmers to buy and sell goats. This position gives her further autonomy to work with other women and generate more income. When I visited The Goat Trust, I watched Rita Devi conduct information sessions with goat farmers where they conversed about their experience raising goats––what products to use and how to ensure that their goats remain healthy.​
The Goat Trust gave Rita Devi a new outlook on her life. One where she aspires to utilize her skill set to buy and sell even more goats, help other women do the same, and provide enough income to support her girls, all while being a role model for self-made women in her community.
Maya Devi
Pashu Sakhi Profile
Maya Devi was the first Pashu Sakhi I met. I was honestly intimidated by her grace and ability to command every space she enters. Confidence seems to be in her nature, although I presume she gained both confidence and respect because of her position as a Pashu Sakhi.
Maya Devi is innately entrepreneurial. Before The Goat Trust, she bought and sold goats on her own to supplement her husband’s income as an auto-rickshaw driver and construction worker. Maya Devi didn’t find The Goat Trust. She was recommended to attend the Pashu Sakhi training because of her entrepreneurial spirit and influence within her community.
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When I spoke to Maya Devi about her life today, she explained that she likes being the person other farmers go to for help. She is empowered to help the people around her, and it's clear that her community holds her in high regard. Her dedication and foresight have led to her success. When I asked Maya Devi what she wants in the future, unlike many others who didn’t know how to verbalize their future aspirations, she confidently expressed her desire to expand her land so that she can keep more goats.
Maya Devi receives support from her husband who still works as an auto-rickshaw driver, but who also helps her to buy and sells goats. When The Goat Trust selects women for the Pashu Sakhi training, they prioritize women whose families can support them in their endeavors outside of the
home and who aren’t overburdened with tasks at home. Since Maya Devi’s children are older, she has the time to devote to her work, and with the help of her husband, she has become extremely successful.
Jantun
Pashu Sakhi Profile
Jantun is the matriarch of her family. She now cares for many children, grandchildren, and as of about a month before my arrival, a great-grandchild. Jantun has experience raising goats that were used to supplement her husband’s income. He used to have a watch shop in their village. The store was very successful and brought them enough income to support their entire family. A few years ago, her husband’s health began to decline and he had to close the shop. At that point, Jantun joined and became a Pashu Sakhi. Jantun is a powerful role model for the other women in her family. She has taught them the importance of education and hard work as a means of caring for one another.
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Even as she is an older Pashu Sakhi, she continues to conduct meetings with farmers in her village while also selling goat feed to make even more money. She shared that she uses the money that she makes to support her family, especially when someone falls sick. Without The Goat Trust, Jantun wouldn’t have the avenues for generating income, and without her husband’s shop, she doesn’t know how she would afford the additional expenses that her ever-growing family requires.
The Goat Trust gave her the flexibility to encourage education for the girls she has and continues to raise, and enough money for them to live comfortably.
