11 Female Leaders in Asia Empowering Women and Girls

The individuals from across Asia on the Gen.T List 2022 who are supporting and championing women and girls through their work

From working with abused young women to offer them a second chance, to creating opportunities for Muslim and minority women in tech, making the domestic helper market fairer and using martial arts to empower women, these are some of the individuals from across Asia who feature on this year’s Gen.T List and who are finding myriad ways to support women and girls through a host of inspiring initiatives.

1. Hazlina Abdul Halim

Above Hazlina Abdul Halim (Photo: Darren Gabriel Leow)

President, Singapore Muslim Women’s Association

Location: Singapore

As the youngest president of PPIS (Singapore Muslim Women’s Association), Hazlina Abdul Halim has helped establish its Research and Engagement Department, which raises awareness of issues concerning Muslim women through studies and programmes. She also oversaw the launch of a series of online conversations about female development within the Muslim community. Hazlina is simultaneously the CEO of Make-A-Wish Singapore.

2. Nurul Jihadah Hussain

Above Nurul Jihadah Hussain (Photo: Darren Gabriel Leow)

Founder, The Codette Project

Location: Singapore

Nurul Jihadah Hussain believes technology is the key to giving women an equal chance at achieving success. Through The Codette Project, Muslim and other minority women can upskill through technical workshops and community-building programmes. The non-profit organisation also launched Codette Cares in partnership with the Zendesk Neighbor Foundation to provide funding and mentorship to Singapore-based Muslim women pursuing tech disciplines.

3. Zenna Law

Above Zenna Law (Photo: Imran Sulaiman)

Co-founder and CEO, Pinkcollar

Location: Malaysia

Pinkcollar aims to bring fairness and transparency to the business of hiring a migrant domestic worker. The company, co-founded by Zenna Law, vets and trains helpers in everything from local customs to legal rights before matching them with employers, improving placement success rates and eliminating hidden fees. It received a grant from the Global Fund to End Modern Slavery to extend its services to Indonesian migrant workers and Malaysia's manufacturing sector.

4. Faeznur "Benny" Farok

Above Faeznur "Benny" Farok (Photo: Imran Sulaiman)

Co-founder and Fitness and Martial Arts Instructor, SheFights Gym

Location: Malaysia

SheFights co-founder Faeznur “Benny” Farok, herself a competitive fighter in Muay Thai and Brazilian jiu-jitsu, started her gyms to help women gain added self-confidence through the discipline of various martial arts. Encouraging both physical and mental fitness as well as self-reliance, SheFights has trained more than 1,850 women and children in self-defence.

5. Elaine Hong

Above Elaine Hong (Photo: Imran Sulaiman)

Co-founder and CEO, Enya

Location: Malaysia

Financial hardship, cultural constraints, scarcity of materials and sensitive skin are among the myriad challenges menstrual-age women face every day. Enya, co-founded by Elaine Hong, offers a monthly subscription service to supplies made from organic cotton. To date, it has sold its pads to more than 100,000 customers and has presence in Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei.

6. Nina Ellaine Dizon-Cabrera

Above Nina Ellaline Dizon-Cabrera (Photo: Wesley Villarica)

Founder and CEO, Niv Della Beauty Innovations

Location: Philippines

A proud college dropout turned activist beauty magnate, Nina Ellaine Dizon-Cabrera celebrates diversity, inclusivity and Philippine beauty—which she aims to take global. The founder and CEO of Niv Della Beauty Innovations, which operates beauty brands Colourette Cosmetics and Fresh Formula, she also champions female entrepreneurs through her online community Boss Babes and has donated sales proceeds to aid political prisoners in the Philippines and survivors of 2020’s Typhoon Ulysse.

7. Jessica de Mesa

Above Jessica de Mesa (Photo: Wesley Villarica)

Co-founder and CEO, Kindred

Location: Philippines

With her startup Kindred, Jessica de Mesa gives women in the Philippines access to a range of high-quality health and wellness services. In particular, it sells contraceptive medicines online and delivers them discreetly, particularly important when Covid caused community health centres to pause reproductive health programmes. The company is planning to open physical clinics. Formerly a nurse, she has also been the commercial director of
Zalora Philippines.

8. Bela Gupta D’Souza

Above Bela Gupta D'Souza (Photo: Wesley Villarica)

Founder and CEO, Edamama

Location: Philippines

When Bela Gupta D’Souza launched Edamama in 2020, she knew the pain points that parents face all too well, having two children of her own. With an abundance of new products in an already cluttered parenting space, Edamama cuts through the noise to provide parents with vetted services, products and content that give their child the best. It now works with more than 1,000 brands.

9. Bowie Lam

Above Bowie Lam (Photo: Affa Chan)

Founder and Executive Director, Teen’s Key

Location: Hong Kong

Lending a helping hand to some of the most vulnerable members of society, Bowie Lam works with abused girls and young women, including underage sex workers, providing a supportive environment and a chance for them to decide their own future. In addition to helping sex workers escape and fi nd other work, her organisation Teen’s Key provides sex education classes and free STD screening. So far it has supported more than 13,000 women.

10. Rhea See

Above Rhea See

Co-founder and Co-CEO, She Loves Tech

Location: China

Rhea See founded She Loves Tech, a global platform committed to closing the funding gap for women in the world of technology, and which also organises the world’s largest tech startup competition for women. See is a mentor to female tech entrepreneurs, and has been recognised by the World Economic Forum as a Global Shaper. She has also advised companies including Intel, Bytedance, Swire and Huawei.

11. Anbita Nadine Siregar

Above Anbita Nadine Siregar

Founder and CEO, Yayasan Generasi Maju Berkarya

Location: Indonesia

Anbita Nadine Siregar wants women to be at the heart of the technological revolution. Her organisation Yayasan Generasi Maju Berkarya is behind Generation Girl, which provides innovative programmes that encourage girls to study Stem subjects, aiming to increase female representation in the tech sector. It also runs Pengajar Belajar, a complementary programme for IT teachers. The organisation is supported by the likes of Sequoia Capital, Gojek and Monk’s Hill Ventures.

See all the honourees from the Gen.T List 2022

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Topics

Gen.T List 2022 Asia Women Empowerment Female Entrepreneurs