Putrajaya, 2nd December 2015 – To recognise the women Pro-Chancellors, Chancellors and Vice-Chancellors of Malaysian public and private universities since Independence, Perdana Leadership Foundation and Multimedia University (MMU) have published “Women Leaders in Malaysian Academia”, a coffee-table book that features the biographies of the women along with some of their speeches. Tun Dr. Siti Hasmah Haji Mohd Ali, the wife of the fourth Prime Minister of Malaysia, launched the publication today at Perdana Leadership Foundation.
The idea for the publication came from Tun Dr. Siti Hasmah herself, when she realized there was no publication available on women who helmed Malaysia’s institutions of higher learning. “I believe this is the first collection of women leaders in academia to date, and I hope that this publication will inspire other Malaysian women in their own vocations,” she remarked. Tun Dr. Siti Hasmah had herself served as Chancellor for fifteen years at Multimedia University, Malaysia’s first private university.
Tun Dr. Siti Hasmah stated, “The presence of women heading university councils as Chancellors, Pro-Chancellors or Vice Chancellors in both and private spheres may be small, but the increasing presence of women at the highest level of academia is encouraged and can only bode well for the future.”
She describes the book as not delving into the success factors or obstacles present in the academic career path for women, but seeks instead to applaud and highlight the remarkable women who have ‘broken the glass ceiling’ and paved new paths for other women to follow.
Tan Sri Nik Mohamed Nik Yaacob, Executive Director of Perdana Leadership Foundation, added, “With women making up more and more of our universities’ population, it is timely for Malaysian universities to appoint more women to leadership positions for better representation at the top. We hope that this publication provides young women with role models of leadership.”
Also present at the book launch was Madam Norliza Haji Jaffar, Chief Operating Officer (COO) of MMU. In her speech, Madam Norliza stated that recognizing women leaders is not just a matter of gender equality. Rather, it was an issue of leadership; good leaders are not easy to find, and when they are found, their genders should not be a deal breaker.
The 160-page publication features thirty women Pro-Chancellors, Chancellors, and Vice-Chancellors of Malaysian public and private universities since Independence to the present day. Priced at RM90.00, the book is available for sale from today at Perdana Leadership Foundation. For more information, please visit www.perdana.org.my or call 03-88858960 (Humaira).
