2nd September 2026 - 2 min read
Schoolgirls will get earlier exposure to practical, marketable skills under a new effort by the Women, Family and Community Development Ministry (KPWKM), which plans to introduce it next year.
Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri said KPWKM is working with the Education Department on how the programme will be implemented.
The pilot will be held in Santubong and will serve as the starting point for the ministry’s wider effort to give schoolgirls skills that could be useful in the job market.
Getting an early look at different skills could help girls make more informed choices about what they want to study or pursue after school.
According to Nancy, the goal is to prepare girls for an economy increasingly shaped by artificial intelligence and digital technology. She pointed to curiosity, creativity and adaptability as the qualities that will help girls navigate new tools and opportunities in the years ahead.
KPWKM has identified several products and skills with market potential, she added, aimed at helping participants eventually turn what they learn into income.
This isn’t KPWKM’s first skills initiative in schools. Earlier this year, the ministry ran shorter skills-development sessions in partnership with district education offices, scheduled after exams so they wouldn’t disrupt classes.
The Santubong pilot builds on that pattern with a more structured approach, introducing skills earlier and focusing specifically on ones that could translate into income later on.
The announcement was made during the launch of the Future-Ready Women: Leading Malaysia Through Transformation Programme at the CelcomDigi Hub, held in conjunction with National Women’s Day 2026. The event brought together more than 200 leaders and representatives from the government, industry and corporate sectors to discuss how women can be better equipped for a changing economy and workforce.
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Christina writes about personal finance with an eye for making the complicated feel straightforward. She is drawn to the everyday money decisions people face and genuinely enjoys finding the clearest way to explain them. Between articles, she is probably napping, on a hiking trail, or terrorising her sister’s cats.
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