KUCHING: Sarawak will give women opportunities to hold senior decision-making positions in the state civil service, says Tan Sri Abang Johari Openg.
The Premier cited the recent appointment of Datuk Felicia Tan as deputy state secretary as an example of Sarawak's commitment in this matter.
He also said the Sarawak Economic Development Corporation (SEDC) was now helmed by a woman for the first time.
"Women have an important role to play in our economic development.
"I hope SEDC will continue to grow under the leadership of a woman CEO," he said here on Wednesday (Jan 28) at the International Women's Day Borneo zone celebration.
The event was organised by the federal Women, Family and Community Development Ministry.
Abang Johari said more women would be appointed to leadership and senior positions in various state agencies.
"The reality is that Sarawak would not have progressed without women walking together as development partners.
"When Sarawakian women are strong, Sarawak will continue to grow and prosper," he said.
Abang Johari also said Sarawak needed women to contribute to new sectors like green energy, hydrogen, digital economy, aerospace, creative industries and technology.
"We will not succeed in our new economic future without the involvement of women.
"We need women engineers, scientists, data experts, technopreneurs and leaders in each new sector," he said.
As such, he added, the Sarawak government focused heavily on human capital development, including free tertiary education at state-owned institutions.
"We want to ensure that young Sarawakians, including girls, have access to education without financial barriers," he said.
Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri said the ministry was committed to ensuring that no woman in Sarawak was left out of its assistance and empowerment programmes.
She said nearly 8,000 Sarawakian women had benefitted from the Wanita Dinamik initiative to generate income and be financially independent.
"Each participant is given a RM500 grant for small enterprises.
"For Sarawak, nearly RM4mil is allocated to support entrepreneurship opportunities for them," she said.
Nancy also said 11 Sarawakians were among 100 participants selected under the Perantis programme for women's leadership.
They received RM50,000 each to train other women in leadership, creativity and entrepreneurship.
"This initiative has benefitted 4,122 women, including 644 from the Borneo zone," she said.
