I will be travelling to Pakistan and Afghanistan to help transform the lives of women, my aim is to make these women independent so they can protect their dignity. The situation in both regions is dire, with women suffering the consequences. Millions are facing critical levels of hunger, and women are often bearing the brunt of these challenges.

Afghanistan

Afghanistan has endured decades of conflict, occupation, and instability, which have profoundly impacted the county and its people. As one of the poorest countries in the world, Afghanistan faces numerous challenges, including widespread poverty, underdevelopment, and ongoing food insecurity. The situation has had a huge impact on the women and children who have no means to escape such dire poverty and daily meals have become a challenge.

There is an urgency to help these women. The mention of women selling their organs and children to survive highlights the severe humanitarian crisis and the extreme vulnerability they are facing

The rise of poverty is forcing more women across the northern regions of Afghanistan to turn to desperate measures to escape the grinding poverty. In households where a male family member is no longer alive or unable to provide due to injury or illness, women often bear the burden of finding ways to support their families, including their children and elderly parents. Street begging is the only options for survival for many of these women. The situation in Afghanistan has reached a dire state, with reports of women being forced to sell their daughters, some as young as four to feed themselves and their families. This heartbreaking choice, driven by continuous starvation and desperation, sometimes becomes the only option for survival, with children being sold for as little as $500. According to the UN, nearly 24 million people in Afghanistan are suffering, with 60% of the population experiencing acute hunger. Among them, approximately 8.7 million Afghans are struggling with severe starvation. These numbers underscore the severity of the humanitarian crisis and the urgent need for survival aid.

Some of these women have 9 or more dependents, knowing their survival is in your hands is a lot of pressure and enough to make any woman turn to extreme measures.

Pakistan

“If you are poor and uneducated here, you are just waiting for the day when your life will end; each day is spent trying to find the motivation to survive.”

Pakistan, with a population of just over 220 million people, faces significant challenges related to poverty. Despite its potential, the country struggles with poverty levels exceeding 39%. Women, in particular, suffer from a “poverty of opportunities,” which significantly limits their ability to escape the cycle of poverty. This lack of opportunity often forces many women into dire situations, including begging, crime, and even selling their bodies to support their families.

Women have entered a new era where they must become the head of the household for the following reasons:

1. High unemployment rate for men
2. Lower life expectancy of men
3. Divorce rates have risen
4. Drugs and narcotics are on the rise

With this in mind, there is a lot of pressure to provide and feed their families.

A study conducted in Pakistan found that poverty and the lack of opportunities were associated with criminal activities of women. Most women who committed drug-related offences, theft and prostitution were from economically disadvantaged backgrounds and became involved in such activities in order to make ends meet. As most of the women were divorced, widowed or single, the financial burden fell on them. Many women also become victims to human trafficking, the most common form of which is prostitution as a means of survival. Low levels of living conditions can often compel children to abandon school in order to contribute to the family income which puts them at a high risk of being exploited.

Poverty is about lack of opportunity. It is not the characteristics of the individuals that keep a person poor but rather their circumstances 

The change we can make together:

Together I want to set-up as many women in business with a one-off donation both in Pakistan and Afghanistan, these businesses are designed so women will earn an instant income, Forgotten Women have an amazing model where a women will earn from $100 - $350 a month in profit. She will then be able to feed her children, take care of her household, send her children to school etc. she will do not have to beg or think of other extreme measures which will violate her dignity. 

Let’s help as many women as we can 

Be a light, ladder or a lifeboat in someone’s life (Rumi) 

Donate now:

1 woman in business £1000

Spread your donation over a few months

10 x £100

5 x £200

Donate any amount you can