SHE-TECH Asia needs to move to action - Fatimah

KUCHING, 5 Oct: SHE-TECH ASIA Forum needs to move from being just a forum for discussion to a platform that generates commitment and action in empowering women's leadership in the digital economy.

Sarawak Minister of Women, Child Development and Community Welfare, Dato Sri Fatimah Abdullah said the discussion on women's challenges and opportunities in the digital sector should be translated into actions that can be implemented by organizations and stakeholders.

He said the approach was important to ensure that the outcome of discussions in SHE-TECH ASIA has a measurable impact, including when the forum meets again in 2027.

"When we return to SHE-TECH Asia in 2027, we should be able to ask ourselves, what have we committed? What have we done? What impact have we seen and what have we learned?

"Change means it doesn't happen through one conversation. It happens when discussion leads to commitment, commitment leads to action and action is sustained from time to time", he said.

He said this in his greeting at the SHE-TECH ASIA Forum 2026 on the occasion of Sarawak International Digital Economy Conference (IDECS) 2026 at Borneo Kuching Convention Centre (BCCK), here today.

Fatimah explained that the strategic dialogue in the forum should focus on practical questions, particularly what practices can be implemented within 12 months by organizations to create more opportunities for women to lead in the digital economy.

He said the effort should also include artificial intelligence (AI) and new technologies that are developing.

"Not all the challenges and obstacles can be solved in one session, but this platform could be a first step towards identifying things that can be implemented together by the organizations involved", he said.

According to him, the jointly agreed commitments need to be translated into action at the organizational level so that changes can be made in stages, continuously and uninterrupted after the end of the forum.

She said SHE-TECH ASIA should continue to be a platform that allows women not only to discuss the future of digital economy, but also play a role in shaping it through collaboration, networking, commitment and joint action.