KARACHI: When Asia started driving in Faisalabad 35 years ago, she recalled men and boys would shout at her and pass rude remarks.

Due to her husband’s untimely death early on in their marriage, she had the responsibility of bringing her children up alone, reported BBC on Friday — ahead of International Widows Day (June 23).

Married at the tender age of 15, Asia was widowed six years later. “One day he was drunk and had a road accident,” she said, adding that her husband didn’t even have time to say any last words to her.

Left with the responsibility to care for her two-year-old son and one-year-old daughter, Asia decided she would have to do something.

In Pakistan, widows are often isolated and seen as a bad omen. Asia decided to challenge these stereotypes and took a loan from her cousin to buy a minivan, said the BBC report.

Asia asks widows to work hard and stand on their own feet

“I thought if I buy a minivan, take out their seats and put my own in, then I can generate an income from it,” she said. Her idea was a hit with many parents preferring a woman driving their daughters to school. “My biggest worry after my husband had died was that I had no one left to help me,” she said. “That time and this time are still the same...nobody helps, not even your own brothers and sisters,” the report quoted her as saying.

A micro-finance project, it added, had helped a few widows turn their lives around. According to the Loomba Foundation — an organisation that works towards empowering widows across the globe — there are about 258.5 million widows in the world, of which one in seven live in extreme poverty.

“I want to send out a message to all the widows out there, mothers, sisters or cousins — don’t depend on anyone, get yourself in a position where you can work hard and stand on your own feet,” the BBC quoted her as saying.

“If I can do it, they can do it,” she added. Luckily, for Asia she has also been supported by the Kashf Foundation which encourages women to break stereotypes.

Speaking to Dawn, Roshaneh Zafar of the Kashf Foundation said: “Kashf is committed to helping women become economically independent by providing access to finance, financial education and enterprise development trainings.

“Our approach to women’s economic empowerment is holistic and our purpose is to alleviate women entrepreneurs face in running successful businesses. In addition, we also work with men and encourage them to be supportive of women-led enterprises.”

For instance Asia Baji, she said, had been a Kashf client for over eight years and had been supported both financially and through empowerment activities. “To date we have worked over two million women entrepreneurs across Pakistan,” said Ms Zafar.

“Over the past years, Asia Baji’s journey has been one of many successes. She was able to continue growing her business by purchasing a better vehicle and at the same time she has educated all her children, including her daughters,” she said.

“When I met her last year she told me that once her daughter graduates from college she wants her to work for an organisation like Kashf,” added Ms Zafar.

Published in Dawn, June 23rd, 2018