For Ms. Sharmina Sheuly, Every Day is Women’s Day

Image: Policy LINK

On International Women’s Day, Policy LINK’s Bangladesh team honors an inspirational young woman from the southwestern district of Khulna, one of dozens who have participated in the activity’s workshops around nutrition and food safety policy. Including the voices of these policy champions, especially when they hail from historically marginalized groups, is part of Policy LINK’s drive toward “inclusivity and stakeholder engagement” -- one of six elements in USAID’s Institutional Architecture framework. Read more about the framework and why it matters here.  

‘Since I am from a very remote area, these kinds of events are necessary so that the voice of people like us can reach decision makers at the highest level.’

“Difficulties strengthen the mind, as labor does the body.” These words, by Roman philosopher Seneca, aptly summarize the inspiring journey of Ms. Sharmina Sheuly.

Hailing from the village of Shahpur, part of the district of Khulna in southwestern Bangladesh, Sheuly is a micro-entrepreneur and sole proprietor of a convenience store in Shahpur Bazar. Sheuly used the money and training she received through the Government of Bangladesh’s social safety net program to establish her business at the age of 15.

Starting as a mobile phone top-up service, Sheuly expanded her portfolio to include women’s cosmetics, packaged grocery items, and organic produce sourced from Sheuly’s and her neighbors’ gardens. Before the COVID-19 pandemic struck, Sheuly was earning an average of BDT 15,000 ($173) each month.

Although the pandemic has reduced her monthly income to approximately BDT 9,000 ($104), Sheuly is happy to keep her business afloat and make enough to support her family. She constantly expresses gratitude for her blessings because life was not always as pleasant growing up.

The eldest of two daughters, Sheuly was born into a farming family plagued by financial hardships for as long as she can remember. Her family used to own their own farming lands until they were wrongfully seized by local landlords. This compelled Sheuly’s father, Habibur Rahman, and many others like him to work as a sharecropper, cultivating someone else’s land for a meager income from the harvest.

Thank you, Sheuly, for sharing your vital insights at Policy LINK’s workshops. We look forward to following more of your story – and those of countless other Bangladeshi women who inspire us – in the months and years to come.

Unable to pay for her education beyond 10th grade, Sheuly refused to get married and instead used her wits to start a business. Sheuly’s perseverance eventually led to her learning about a social safety net program targeting destitute children and women, which was being offered by Department of Women Affairs in Khulna. From there, Sheuly continued to push forward, initially shunned by a community that looked down upon women working outside the home, until eventually earning respect and acceptance.

Today, at 31, Sheuly is a well-respected businesswoman who is admired by both her male and female peers. She has been taking care of her family ever since her father fell sick a couple of years back and made sure her younger sister completed high school before arranging her marriage. While still single, Sheuly hopes to get married and raise her own family when the opportunity presents itself.

For now, her time is divided between her business and taking care of her elderly parents. In whatever spare time she has left, Sheuly oversees a market group consisting of 12 female entrepreneurs and is an active member of the Market Management Committee (MMC) of Shahpur Bazar.

Acknowledging her influence and popularity, the Policy Activity invited Sheuly to participate in a series of workshops in Khulna, where she shared practical insights around the grassroots-level challenges to formulating responsive nutrition and food safety policy.

“I am honored to be invited to these workshops and to be able to participate in important discussions around issues that are relevant to my community,” says Sheuly. “Since I am from a very remote area, these kinds of events are necessary so that the voice of people like us can reach decision makers at the highest level.”

Resources

Learn more about Policy LINK’s work in Bangladesh here.