Manila: Afghanistan’s first and only female governor and a humanitarian worker from the Kachin minority in Myanmar are among this year’s recipients of a Philippine leadership prize.

Habiba Sarabi was honoured for helping build a functioning local government and pushing for education and women’s rights in Afghanistan’s Bamyan province despite discrimination and poverty. Lahpai Seng Raw helps rehabilitate damaged communities amid armed conflict.

The Ramon Magsaysay Awards announced Wednesday honour three individuals and two organisations for changing their societies for the better. They are named after a popular Philippine president who died in a plane crash in 1957.