Championing Women in Malaysia with Prasarana
With trust in government at an all-time low and only 49% OF WOMEN JOINING THE NATIONAL WORKFORCE, Malaysia’s Prasarana TEAMED UP with Weber Shandwick to campaign for equality and help restore PEOPLE’S faith in institutions.
Making a change
For the past fifteen years, Malaysia has enjoyed a steady period of economic growth and expansion. However, in 2017, Malaysians were found to be the most pessimistic economy in the ASEAN region – with only a small percentage of people actually trusting in their government. And, since 2016, Malaysia has also registered the lowest rates of female workforce participation in South East Asia. A government-linked company and the country's largest public transport provider, Prasarana were determined to shift the equation.
WANITA PUN BOLEH
Leveraged by the increased popularity of social media in Malaysia and inspired by the innate positivity of social activism, Weber Shandwick Malaysia and Prasarana developed the Wanita Pun Boleh (Women Can Too!) campaign – a strategy that saw the CEO of Prasarana devote his social platforms to sharing stories of women in the Prasarana workforce over a period of six months.
Nine women were selected from Prasarana’s various business units and operations – with candidates ranging from young executives to frontline staff. A diversity of success stories was fostered to demonstrate Prasarana’s ongoing role as a conduit through which women can achieve their dreams in a traditionally male-dominated sector.
The Women of Prasarana
Nur Syuhada, pictured, is a young hijabista (hijab fashionista) who works for Prasarana as a rail engineer. 21-year-old Nur Aina Asmida was the youngest female train captain in the organisation. Mother-of-two Tuty Sofia represented Kuala Lumpur’s first female electric bus driver. Through a mixture of photos, videos and interviews, these stories took flight on social media.
Impact
Shifting The Needle
The women of Prasarana would eventually be embraced by over eight million people – approximately 42% of the country’s digital population. Through media outlets, the movement of Wanita Pun Boleh would even extend beyond Malaysia and into Indonesia. In total, over thirty different publications (across multiple languages) shared the stories of Wanita Pun Boleh. Beyond visibility, Prasarana, Weber Shandwick Malaysia and Wanita Pun Boleh helped inspire genuine change in Malaysian culture. In 2016, Malaysia’s rate of female workforce participation was found to be just over 50%. But, by the end of 2017, that figure had shifted to 54.6% – emphatically demonstrating Wanita Pun Boleh. Women Can Too!