Malaysia Urges Women to Lead Green Energy Transition

Women must play an active role in Malaysia’s energy transition rather than remain only beneficiaries, as the country works to bring more underutilized female talent into the workforce and build a more inclusive green economy, said Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri.

Speaking at the closing of the 7th International Sustainable Energy Summit 2026, Nancy said Malaysia has a significant pool of talented women whose skills can contribute to the country’s development. She stressed the importance of involving women in shaping future policies, investments and technologies related to the green economy.

Nancy also highlighted that Malaysian women’s strong academic achievements have not resulted in equal participation in the economy. The gap is especially noticeable in technical and clean energy sector, where greater involvement of women could help strengthen Malaysia’s shift towards a greener economy.

In 2025, Malaysia’s female labor force participation rate was 56.6%, compared with 83.3% among men. Of the 7.03 million people outside the labor force, 4.89 million, or 69.5%, were women. Among these women, 42.8% said housework and family responsibilities were the main reasons for staying out of the workforce. The figures highlight the need for stronger support to help women participate fully in Malaysia’s economic and energy transition.

Key Highlights:

• Women’s workforce participation remains low at 56.6% in Malaysia
• Women make up 15.7% of engineering, manufacturing and construction graduates
• Malaysia urged to include more women in green energy leadership and decision-making

"The issue is whether women have the opportunity, support and space to put that talent to work," Bernama reported her saying.

Data from the Asean Energy Database System indicates that women make up 15.7% of graduates in engineering, manufacturing, and construction across Malaysia. However, Minister Nancy noted that strong educational attainment has not automatically generated equal economic participation, pointing to the need for targeted, inclusive policy interventions across the energy sector.

To address these disparities, she called for Gender Equality, Disability and Social Inclusion principles to be embedded into policy formulation, executive leadership, and governance frameworks across all sectors.

"The energy transition is not only about systems, targets and new technologies. Ultimately, it is about improving our people – how they live, work and build their future.

"The aspiration is that women should not be seen only as beneficiaries of the energy transition; women must also help shape it. That means having women at the table where policies are designed, investments are decided, technologies are developed and industries are led," she said.

"Among them, 42.8 per cent cited housework and family responsibilities as the main reason for remaining outside the workforce. These figures tell us that talent is not the problem. The issue is whether women have the opportunity, support and space to put that talent to work," she said.

Nancy said this in her speech at the closing of the 7th International Sustainable Energy Summit 2026 today. She said although women accounted for 15.7 per cent of graduates in engineering, manufacturing and construction in Malaysia, according to the Asean Energy Database System, higher academic achievement had yet to translate automatically into equal economic participation.