Kuala Lumpur: Malaysia’s representation of women in politics has declined to 13.36 per cent in Parliament, prompting calls for more robust policy interventions and leadership development programmes. Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri said the issue is not due to a lack of party support, but rather a deeply rooted political culture.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, Nancy highlighted that the decline in female political representation is not because parties failed to nominate women candidates. Instead, she pointed out that the electorate tends to vote for parties rather than individual female candidates. ‘When I first came in as a Member of Parliament in 2008, there were about 14 per cent of us. Now it is reducing, but this does not mean that the parties did not send enough (female candidates). The party did send, but people did not vote for women because that is not a trend that we have in Malaysia,’ she explained. This trend has prompted her ministry to introduce the Women’s Leadership Apprenticeship Programme (PERANTIS) to encourage more women to take up leadership roles in politics.

Nancy made these remarks while addressing reporters after her keynote speech at the International Conference for Empowering Women’s Inclusive Leadership (ICEWIL). PERANTIS focuses on developing women’s leadership skills across various sectors, including the economy, politics, social affairs, law, education, health, safety, welfare, and other professional areas.

The initiative was initially launched with a RM5 million allocation by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim on March 8, last year, during the International Women’s Day celebration. In 2024, 25 recipients were selected for the programme, but only two focused on politics, highlighting the limited engagement with political leadership among Malaysians.

Nancy emphasized the need for more leadership programmes like ICEWIL to expose young people to the essence of leadership. For 2025, the ministry plans to expand the programme with a RM5 million investment, 100 mentors, and 5,000 participants.