Shayirkul Adreshova is part of group of women farmers who supply
medicinal herbs to European markets, thanks to WFP/GIZ project.
Photo: WFP/Alima Nurgazieva  A WFP Project Empowers Women
Farmers In Rural Kyrgyzstan  In a remote Kyrgyz
village, Shayirkul Adreshova had the seemingly impossible dream
of becoming a successful business woman whose products sell
internationally. The dream turned into reality three years after
she had joined a WFP food-for-assets project that assists
vulnerable rural women. She is now part of a small group of
women farmers who provide medicinal herbs to European markets,
including valerian that is most often used to treat insomnia.
Kyrgyz Republic, is a landlocked low-income country in Central
Asia dominated by the majestic Tian Shan snow-capped mountain
range. A former Soviet Republic, the country gained independence
in 1991. Although it has since made some economic progress,
almost 38 percent of the people remain below the poverty line
and an estimated 24 percent are food-insecu