Sarawak opens up space for women in leadership

KUCHING, 5 Oct: The Sarawak Government is open in providing educated women with opportunities to lead leadership especially in the political and administrative sectors.

Sarawak Minister of Women, Child Development and Community Welfare Dato Sri Fatimah Abdullah said that women's leadership is not only dependent on individual abilities but also requires opportunities, support, experience and institutional space for them to develop.

According to him, his experience in the Sarawak political arena proved the importance of the opportunity when Allahyarham Tun Pehin Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud who was then Chief Minister of Sarawak gave him confidence to compete in rural areas.

"Before me, the candidates competing were always men. For the first time, Tun Taib Mahmud, then Prime Minister wanted a female candidate with an educational background and from rural areas.

"He was so firm about it. I can tell you that in his day, the number of women politicians was quite large. This is a change, but we still have a long way to go", he said.

Fatimah said this when she was addressing the Sarawak Women of Tomorrow 2026 (Season 5) programme organised by the Women's Leadership Foundation here today.

She said that women's leadership in Sarawak should continue to be strengthened to ensure that the potential of these groups can translate into participation, subsequent leadership and influence in decision-making.

He said that Sarawak now has an increasing number of educated and capable women joining universities, professional fields, business, public institutions as well as community-level leadership.

He also stressed that women already in leadership positions should help the next generation by providing support, empowerment and opportunities for young women to thrive.

In the same speech, Fatimah said that the Government of Sarawak has also provided various initiatives to support women's leadership development including scholarship, professional development and childcare support enabling women to stay on their career path.

She said that efforts to strengthen women leadership not only increase the number of women in leadership positions, but ensure they are able to lead with competence, courage, wisdom and a sense of responsibility for Sarawak's future.