MGA champions gender equality in energy sector
KUCHING: Championing equal opportunities and diversity in the energy sector, the Malaysian Gas Association (MGA) in collaboration with Malaysia Women in Energy (MyWiE) organised the Forum on Women in Energy (FoWiE) for the second successive year.
The forum was officiated by the youngest Malaysian woman Minister Yeo Bee Yin, the Minister of Energy, Science, Technology, Environment and Climate Change.
With MGA powering FoWiE 2018 themed ‘ Innovation and Sustainability through Diversity’, the event focused on increasing diversity and agility to drive organisational evolution, how this change would impact business performance and sharing of best practices.
The forum featured interactive panel sessions with key industry leaders on topics such as Attracting Women into Technical Lines, Inclusive Culture and Increasing Women Leaders, culminating with Yeo presenting the MyWiE Best Practices proposal to the heads of energy companies.
Given MGA’s instrumental role in the formation of MyWiE, a women’s advocacy group, MGA was appointed as the Secretariat for MyWiE to continue driving engagements and development of proposals to address and overcome the challenges faced by women in the energy sector.
Yeo said, “I have always been an advocate for higher female representation in politics and increased women participation in the workforce.
“Women account for half the available talent pool of any country, hence how a government empowers women to achieve their full potential will directly impact the development of the country.”
“Encouraging greater participation of women in the workforce will lead to a more competitive labour market, and therefore a more competitive economy across all sectors including energy. Today, I am proud to be present among such accomplished women in influential leadership roles having carved a niche for themselves in a predominantly male industry,” she added.
Through FoWiE, women in the energy sector are looking to create greater inclusivity in the work environment to firstly encourage higher number of women to be a part of the industry and secondly, create a cohesive organisation where there is no discrimination based on gender.
The overarching goal is to foster meritocracy by treating everyone as equals, affording the same opportunities to showcase their abilities, and breaking any glass ceilings to achieve the highest possible professional stature.
To address these matters, MGA facilitated MyWiE’s workshops with women leaders from across the energy sector to draft the MyWiE Best Practices proposal, a compilation of best practices and recommended policy interventions designed to alleviate the challenges faced by women in the workspace and contribute towards increasing their participation in the energy sector.
Speaking after presenting the MyWiE proposal paper to the Minister, MGA president Hazli Sham Kassim said, “As the nation’s lead advocate for the natural gas industry and as the defining force behind MyWiE, MGA is committed to raising our voice to address important issues including that of gender equality.
“We are proud and honoured to have two eminent ladies in MGA’s leadership council given our commitment to encourage meritocracy and equal opportunities across all levels of the industry.
“With the MyWiE Best Practices proposal, we call on all organisations to implement our findings towards creating an unbiased and conducive workspace that promises equal opportunities for women to participate across Malaysia’s energy sector,” he added.
Last month, MGA was acknowledged by TalentCorp as a champion for diversity and inclusion during its Life at Work Awards 2018. MGA is also on MyWiE’s Advisory Panel alongside Petronas Leading Women Network (PLWN), Shell Women Action Network (SWAN), Sarawak Energy Leading Women Network (SELWN) and the 30% Club.