♪ host: this week, "global 30000" is dedicated to women. we head to south africa's hippest hubs to meet young, female tech-whizzes. in india, we pay a visit to the khasi, where women run the show. and in saudi arabia, we meet women for whom working means nothing less than freedom. freedom is an alien concept for women here. they're not allowed to drive. they need male consent to travel, or even just to own a passport. but for several years, women in saudi arabia have been campaigning for equal rights, filming themselves behind the wheel, and training for football

matches. they've even ventured into satire on youtube. and it's having an effect. saudi universities now have more female than male students. and over the next few years the number of women in the workforce is set to rise from 22% to 30%. in the saudi city of jeddah, the nesma embroidery and tailoring center is breaking new ground. it employs more than 60 saudi women. that's unusual in this extremely conservative islamic kingdom. its managing director is rana zumai. herself a mother of three, she pays her staff well and provides them with a minibus service and even daycare for their children.

ms. zumai: a shy housewife should absolutely grab this job opportunity. and in the process, learn how to make a more confident impression. in the beginning when the customer, they not trusting us, that how i can deal as a man -- they are all women. some of customers make the order in minimum quantity, because they don't trust that we can deliver it. but after the first deal and the second deal and the third deal, now they depend on us in all their quantity, and big quantity. we keep it female because we want to provide our women, muslim women, with an environment where they feel relief if they want to work freely without wearing hijab. we feel more comfortable. host: the women are only wearing their veils inside the factory

today because of the cameras. ms. zumai: in the beginning, it because i need the money. but they later discover that the work, it means more than this. that work means to secure yourself, feel your value, your right in your community. now the target of the girl when she graduates from this country school is not only focused on what man she will marry. no, because she can live without being married. host: fatimah ali is one of the employees who is not married. ms. ali: the most important thing for me is to know that i am no longer financially dependent on my parents. that makes me feel so strong. all of a sudden i can just go out and do things by myself, things our society doesn't think are good for women -- being with

friends or being out and about on my own. in the past i was never among people. i was always at home. today, i have made so many good friends. host: a new sense of freedom in a country that until recently, largely excluded women from public life. host: how long have married women in europe had the right to work without the consent of their husbands? in france, since 1965. women in germany had to wait another 12 years. and in switzerland, it wasn't until 1988 that legal reforms gave women and men equal rights. before that, men were the head of the family, while women cared for the children and household. equality is about leading an autonomous life, it's about education, and deciding whether

to have children or not. and of course it's about being paid the same for the same work -- still a huge issue, worldwide. women in india are among the most disadvantaged in the world. and yet here, in the state of meghalaya, there's a tribe who do things completely differently -- the khasi. >> you see. i have a daughter. she is a girl, and i will educate her. whatever she wants, i will give her, but not bad things. host: not bad things but good things, and that means land and a house. khasi men work on their wives' land. at the moment they're harvesting laurel. this landowner has a son, and also, much to her satisfaction, two daughters. >> in khasi society, overall responsibility lies with

mothers. the mother is the head of the family. when she dies, her daughter inherits her property. that's how it's been for generations. host: the khasi practice matrilineal descent. the youngest daughter of the family, the ka khadduh, inherits all ancestral property. sons live with their mothers until they get married. then they move in with their wife's family. every time a daughter marries, the family extends the property to accommodate her new family. >> our children have their mother's name, not their father's name. your task as a man is to fulfill your family's needs. the women are in charge of the home and the property. they make sure everything runs smoothly. host: in the state of meghalaya,

the khasi -- who number roughly one million -- are officially recognized as an ethnic minority. they enjoy certain privileges, with khasi laws protected by an autonomous district government. they also pay lower taxes and benefit from india's employment reservation policy for government and public sector jobs. jobs. indian culture tends to favor boys over girls. but in khasi culture, a family with no girls is considered unfortunate. men are financially dependent on their wives. there are barely any registered cases of domestic violence. in the afternoons, the women like to meet up for tea and gossip in mawlongbna. from farmers to businesswomen, everyone here chats together comfortably. kong arbi is the owner of the tea house. ms. arbi: i sell tea and light snacks. i provide for my own children

and my whole clan. i don't earn a lot, but it's enough for my family. host: kong arbi is determined to protect khasi tradition from outside influences. ms. arbi: as a woman, i'm very proud of our tradition. men move in with their wives. they look after us and they also help us look after the children. it's good to be a woman here. host: but life isn't always easy for the ka khadduh. from an early age, youngest daughters have to take care of their families. they look after the younger children in the extended family, cook, clean, and wash clothes. they're also expected to take care of their parents and grandparents until they die. indian society is largely

male-dominated, and khasi men are often the butt of jokes. but they themselves have no problem with women ruling the roost. >> my wife should respect me a lot and i also respect her a lot. but we both respect raising our children, for developing their future, girls or boys. but love is more important. i love her and she loves me, and supporting our children. host: bibalisha is renovating her mother's market stall. she's just 18 and still goes to school, but she's already the head of her family. still, she's optimistic about the future. bibalisha: it's not a burden at all. because after we work and get a job at least we can make money. for our parents, we can keep a maid at home, maybe to take care

of them. for us, after our studies i can go abroad, go for travelling. it's not a burden at all. host: but if she's to uphold tradition as well, she'll have her work cut out for her. however, one tradition remains unchallenged. meghalaya's villages are considered the cleanest in the whole of asia. the women are constantly cleaning and tidying. and broomsticks from mawlongbna are popular tourist souvenirs. broom grass grows here everywhere. it's handpicked by the women and bound to make the brooms. one feature of khasi culture, at least, that has been exported all over south asia. ♪ host: from rural india to urban germany. we asked some women and men, girls and boys, to give us a couple of minutes of their time

and teypical woman.deas of a >> i'd say a typical woman is very emotional, very intuitive, more so than men. >> they have got far too many clothes in their closet, they're addicted to shopping. >> sensitive, led by their feelings. >> that's right, moody. >> they complain about everything. >> they can cook. tidy up. >> a typical woman? a good listener. but when the man's not there, she does what she wants. >> sweet, polite. >> a little bit shy. >> good manners, a bit shy.

>> cute, somehow. >> women are only interested in shopping, appearances, how they look. >> yeah, make-up and all that. >> when someone gives her an opportunity, she will say, oh, i really don't know if i can do that. >> tough, self-confident, strong. host: and now to some strong women campaigning for the rights of others, using dance to protest against violence. "one billion rising" got underway in 2013. the name "one billion" reminds us that one in three women around the world have already suffered abuse in their lives. it's become one of the largest protest movements in the world. we met the woman behind it. reporter: author, artist, and activist. eve ensler is outspoken and

impulsive, and she fights for her vision of feminism. ms. ensler: you believe in the power that women have in them and the power they can generate if they are equal, if they are cherished, if they aren't hurt and uncut, unviolated and unraped. what would women be? reporter: this is washington square park in new york city. demonstrations have been taking place here ever since u.s. president donald trump took power. whenever she can, eve ensler joins in. ms. ensler: just all these people here. the fact that the resistance is growing and growing and growing, and it's gonna get fiercer and deeper and more connected as we go. and eventually we are going to have a massive uprising in this country against this regime. i believe it. reporter: an uncompromising radical, she rejects everything

that donald trump stands for. ms. ensler: refer to him as predator-in-chief from this point on. this will drive him crazy because he loves the name so much. predator-in-chief! we have a self-confessed sexual assaulter, an accused rapist, a sexual harasser. a man who has said women should be punished for having abortions. reporter: for decades, the new yorker has been campaigning for equal rights for women, whether in america, india, or congo. ♪ she rose to fame with "the vagina monologues," a theater piece about women and their experiences with sex, relationships, and violence. she herself suffered violence and sexual abuse as a child. yet, she says the anger she felt for her father made her stronger. ms. ensler: i bless my rage,

because that rage kept me from killing myself. you know, i became suicidal later on, but at the time of my childhood i was just defiant. i did everything the opposite if he told me to do. told me not to go out, i went out. he told me not to smoke pot, i smoked pot. told me not to -- everything he did. but you know what? that kept me alive. reporter: now she draws her strength from her friends, tony montenieri and susan swan. they're her family, and the three work closely together. in 1998, ensler founded the women's organization v-day. active worldwide, v-day supports artists and social activists, raises money and finances ity women's shelters. she women's shelters.lish of joy,a community for survivors of gender violence in the democratic republic of congo. ♪ this evening she's on her way to a women's film festival, where she'll be receiving an award. she stops for photographs on the

red carpet with her stepson, actor dylan mcdermott. they've very close. mr. mcdermott: one of the most important things in life, obviously, is your character. and eve's character is so true, so gold, if you will. and what she has done for women around the planet will go down in history, i believe. i mean, she is a radical. reporter: eve ensler is the evening's guest of honor. she's a role model for many of the women in the audience. >> ladies and gentlemen, the next president of the united states, eve ensler! reporter: eve ensler enjoys her applause, but she's never seen herself as a celebrity. ms. ensler: so much of my life has been about being on the frontlines, struggling in the arts where i had to struggle every day of my life in the tiniest little theaters at the beginning of my career to little holes in the middle of nowhere

to little towns. and the same with my activism. i have been doing direct action, i have been doing organizing for 40 years. reporter: her most ambitious every year on february 14, people across the globe come together to dance in defiance of the injustices women suffer. dance as protest. the campaign has supporters all over the world, from new york, to berlin, to dehli. ms. ensler: music, dance, song, hip hop, poetry, spoken word, theatre. we need to make art. we need to make love. art brings us into our bodies. it catalyses sexual energy and we all need to have a lot of sex. reporter: that's the sort of message her fans and supporters love her for. ♪ the continued violence against women makes her furious.

but eve ensler doesn't despair. she will carry on her fight. giving up simply isn't an option. host: and now to africa, a continent with 58 countries and 1.2 billion people. but just how linked up are they? less than a third of africans have internet access -- most of them in south africa, kenya, and nigeria. in 2015, there were 226 million registered smartphone sim-cards. however, that number is set to triple by 2020. and that's influencing urban hipsters in their choice of work. reporter: cape town's waterfront is prime real estate, and a perfect location for a business. tha he hat the founders of leads africathought, and set

up their internet platform to help young african women achieve their professional dreams. it organizes workshops and events across africa on networking, drawing up business plans, and marketing and pr strategies. this weekend, thoko miya is running a workshop on programming for young entrepreneurs. computer science and software design are still very much male-dominated fields. ms. miya: science, technology, engineering and math are extremely important because in africa -- and i think it is a phenomenon around the world -- women often are told, you would be better at something else, and that's why we focus on technology and entrepreneurship. getting people, and especially women in africa, involved in tech and getting them involved in entrepreneurship activities,

getting them involved in key areas where they could be industry leaders. reporter: thoko miya works for girlhype, a non-profit organization that aims to get more women into stem subjects. her mother founded girlhype 12 years ago. ms. miya: the biggest challenge is investments. getting investments, getting endorsements, getting sponsorships. i think african women really need to come in with a sense of leadership, come in with a sense of ownership, come in with, this is me, this is what i do and i am capable. leave the beggar mentality at home, you don't need to beg when you're here. bring you and your leadership. reporter: some of today's participants already run their own websites. nyaki tshabangu has an online platform that promotes natural hair. users can buy products, discuss tips for hair care, and find out about services and events taking place. she is familiar with the challenges facing female entrepreneurs.

ms. tshabangu: access to government funding, access to private sector funding, not being bold enough to go into companies and say, you should hire me or i need to be working here or you need to listen to me. i think that is the biggest challenge with women, in south africa particularly. reporter: mich atagana is head of communications and public affairs at google south africa. she's confident that digital technology will continue to create jobs. she also hopes it will allow african businesses to forge their own path. ms. atagana: i think we are so obsessed with scale because that's what the world of entrepreneurship in the west has taught us to believe in. when you think about it, if i employ three people and one person leaves my business, because they are equipped enough to start their own business, and then they employ another three people and one person leaves that business to go employ another three people -- when that happens on a scale of 10,000, is that not scaling? reporter: the new opportunities

aren't restricted to the digital world. job creation is a priority in every sector. ms: atagana: it is only some of jobs that apps can give, but if you can build a farm that allows africans to produce and sell their own food, you've created not just so many jobs, you've fed so many people. reporter: here in cape town, the digital future has arrived, and women are very much part of it. ♪ >> i am. >> a global teen. ♪ milenia: my name is milenia reije, i live in las galeras. i was born on the 2nd of

january, 2000, and that's why i was named milenia. ♪ i love it. i get up at 7:00 in the morning to get to school by 8:00, and i stay until midday. i like spending time with my friends and playing games. ♪ we play dominoes. you need four players. ♪

i'm afraid of violence and murder. i'm also frightened by cyclones and earthquakes, that sort of thing. ♪ trees. fruit. games. and the beach. ♪ >> it's brain and beauty, it's trying to solve the problems.

>> men and women, they are all equal because they all have the same responsibilities. what i can do, a woman can do. host: what's a typical woman or a typical man for you? tell us on facebook -- dw global society. you'll also find lots of interesting discussions, web videos, and live events there. follow us on dw global society. we can't wait to hear from you. ♪ that's all for this week. global 3000 in our media center at dw.com. we are back next week. see you then. ♪ [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its

- [female voice over]: this program is made possible in part by the town of marion, home of the wayne henderson school of appalachian arts, celebrating 21 years as a certified virginia main street community. the historic general francis marion hotel and the speak easy restaurant and lounge, providing accommodations and casual fine dining. in downtown marion, virginia. the bank of marion. technology powered, service driven. wbrf 98.1 fm. and bryant label, a proud supporter of our region's musical heritage. ("cherokee shuffle" by gerald anderson) ♪