KUCHING: The talents and potential of women must be fully harnessed in strengthening state development, particularly through leadership roles and active participation in strategic sectors.
Institute of Corporate Directors Malaysia (ICDM) chairperson Tan Sri Datuk Zarinah Anwar noted that empowering women through capacity building and skills enhancement is key to ensuring a more balanced participation of both men and women at all levels of organisations, in both the public and private sectors.
“The main goal is to strengthen women’s competencies and help them navigate the challenges they face in climbing the career ladder.
“We want to create more opportunities for women to hold leadership positions,” she told the media after paying a courtesy visit to Premier Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg at Wisma Bapa Malaysia here on Tuesday (April 22).
She said that statistics show over 60 per cent of university graduates in Malaysia are women, yet leadership and top executive positions remain male-dominated.
This situation, she added, warrants serious attention to ensure that female talent and expertise are not overlooked.
“It is vital for all organisations, including the state government, to make full use of all available talent—both male and female—to achieve the best outcomes for organisational and state development.”
When asked about the response from Abang Johari, Zarinah said the Premier expressed his full support for women’s capacity-building initiatives, which align with the government’s vision to empower human capital as a key driver of the state’s progress.
She noted that the Premier places strong emphasis on human capital development and views collaboration with SCOPE as an important platform to strengthen the capacity and competence of Sarawak’s workforce.
