PUTRAJAYA: The Women, Family and Community Development Ministry is looking into the need to expand provisions under the law to address issues of sexual misconduct involving children, specifically predation and peer-to-peer grooming.
Its Minister, Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri (pic), said this will be addressed through proposed amendments to the Child Act 2001, which the ministry is currently revising.
Asked whether the amendments would cover situations where children were allegedly grooming their peers, Nancy said the ministry would study the matter.
She said the ministry was also evaluating whether specific measures should apply to children as young as 13.
“However, we must study the situation carefully to avoid double jeopardy for minors,” she said.
Nancy added that the ministry would discuss the matter with relevant agencies, particularly the Home Ministry, before finalising the amendments.
Recently, eight juveniles, aged between 13 and 18, were detained in Ops Pedo Integrated, which was jointly conducted by the police and the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC).
Nancy also said an infertility counselling module for primary care is now available to bridge a gap in existing healthcare training. This module would help specialists who may have the clinical expertise but are not sufficiently equipped to manage the emotional needs of their patients.
“Expertise alone is not enough for them to fully assist those in need through their services. What they (practitioners) also need is expertise or information on how to manage their patients emotionally,” she said during a press conference at the National Reproductive Health Symposium 2026 launch yesterday.
“I’m not saying they need to become emotional experts, but these specialists have gathered to help bridge that gap.”
She said healthcare providers would also be better equipped to refer patients between different levels of healthcare, including to obstetrics and gynaecology specialists where necessary.
“Sometimes, a doctor’s expertise is focused on a single area, so gathering like this allows them to connect,” she said.
Earlier in her speech, Nancy said Malaysia’s fertility rate has shown a continuous decline from 4.9 children per woman in 1970 to 1.6 in 2024, according to the Statistics Department (DOSM).
“Among the contributing factors are lifestyle changes, economic pressure, the cost of living, delayed marriage and increased participation of women in education and the workforce.”
She also said that greater awareness was needed, as subfertility was often viewed as solely a women’s issue, but it includes men too.
