KATHMANDU, NEPAL – Today, hundreds of female tempo drivers ply the streets of Kathmandu, Nepal’s capital. The woman who paved the way for all of them is Laxmi Sharma, Nepal’s first female tempo driver.“Every day, I had to fight battles in this male-dominated profession,” says Sharma, 65. “It was very frustrating to hold my ground in this patriarchal society. But I was strong-willed, and I never gave up.” A tempo is a three-wheeled, battery-powered vehicle that can accommodate up to 10 people.Sharma married at 13, but her husband abandoned her 14 years later, leaving her to raise three daughters on her own.“I worked as a housemaid to sustain my family, but it was from hand to mouth,” says Sharma, who did domestic work for 16 years.In 1981, hoping for a better life for her daughters, Sharma sought a more lucrative career. She was illiterate but good with her hands. She also believed that a man’s job would yield more money. -