In this picture taken on November 15, 2018, a Pakistani woman pumps water from a hand pump next to a toilet in Basti Ameerwala village in central Punjab province.

For as long as she can remember, Ayeesha Siddiqua has fought her male relatives for access to toilets — but a sanitation drive by new premier Imran Khan could make life easier for women in patriarchal Pakistan.

Sonia Shehzadi lives in a conservative village in the province of Punjab in Pakistan where opportunities for girls and young women to access education are limited because there is poor public transportation and they cannot ride a motor bike freely. To help her family do the daily tasks and to complete her education, Shezadi dresses like a man.

In October, Salman Sufi from Pakistan won India’s prestigious Mother Teresa Award for his work on empowering women. He has been particularly active in trying to protect women from violence in Punjab, the most populated province of Pakistan. DW spoke to Sufi about his work.

Since picking up a wrench as one of the first female car mechanics in conservative Pakistan, Uzma Nawaz has faced two common reactions: shock and surprise. And then a bit of respect.

The Elections Act 2017 passed by Pakistani parliament in 2017 encouraged transgender people to vote and also to contest in elections. Five transgender candidates took up the challenge, running successful, albeit losing, political campaigns.

A recent series of gruesome rapes and murders has sparked outrage in northern India. The incidents are the latest for a region with a grim history of violence against women. Murali Krishnan reports from New Delhi.

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Seema Azis is one of the most prominent business leaders in South Asia. However, she is mostly known for her work in improving the education sector of Pakistan. Aziz runs more than 700 English medium schools in Pakistan for the underprivileged.