The region does not lack capable women; it lacks systems that recognise their capability early enough, protect it consistently enough, and invest in it seriously enough. This is why South Asia needs gender embedded in business-as-usual regionalism. Women should not remain confined to special side projects. They must be present where the real decisions and transactions of the region take place: in trade, digital markets, procurement, logistics, finance, agriculture, public health, education, energy, climate adaptation, and accountability.

A home-based worker in Pakistan should be able to become a registered supplier in a regional value chain. A young graduate should access digital work across borders. A woman entrepreneur should use digital payments and logistics support. A rural woman should benefit from clean cooking, safe water, solar energy, and time-saving infrastructure. A girl should move from school to skills to employment without fear or invisibility.

The climate question makes this even more urgent. Climate change is not gender-neutral. Floods, heatwaves, water scarcity, food insecurity, displacement, and disaster risk affect women in specific and often heavier ways. When water sources dry up, women walk farther. When disasters strike, women carry greater care........

© The Nation