Sabah to host Asean Women's Conference August 16
Published on: Fri, Jul 11, 2025 Text Size: Rozita (fourth left) presenting a souvenir to Toh Puan Faridah. Kota Kinabalu: The Asean Women's Conference on Best Practices 2025 (AWCoBP 2025) will be held at the Sabah International Convention Centre (SICC) on August 16, bringing together participants from five Asean countries to exchange best practices and strengthen regional women's empowerment. President of the Sabah Women's Small and Medium Industry Association (IKSnita) Datuk Dayang Khatijah Datu Bachtiyal, said the event is expected to draw around 500 women from various sectors across Asean. She said the conference will focus on accelerating collective action and closing data gaps through the sharing of experiences, solutions and success stories in areas such as entrepreneurship, leadership and social impact. 'AWCoBP 2025 is the only annual interdisciplinary platform of its kind. We are gathering women from diverse backgrounds to share insights and build holistic solutions to the challenges women face today,' she said. She said this after paying a courtesy call on the wife of the Yang di-Pertua Negeri Sabah, Toh Puan Faridah Tussin, at Istana Seri Kinabalu on Tuesday. Dayang Khatijah, who was accompanied by Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) Sabah Rector Associate Professor Dr Rozita Mohammed, said the visit was also to formally invite Toh Puan to officiate the conference. The one-day event will run from 8am to 5pm and include an exhibition, cultural performances, and interactive sessions designed to highlight the achievements and lived experiences of women throughout Asean. 'This is not just another event. It's a key moment to celebrate progress, connect changemakers and reinforce women's agendas at both the state and regional levels,' she said. She said the conference is designed to ensure best practices are shared equitably and strategically and is expected to be one of the most impactful women-focused platforms in the region this year. * Follow us on our official WhatsApp channel and Telegram for breaking news alerts and key updates! * Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available.
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The risk of tariff stacking, where goods containing Chinese components are penalised under multiple jurisdictions, adds to exporters' cost pressures, potentially eroding Malaysia's competitiveness even without direct involvement in transhipment. "Since Malaysia's National Semiconductor Strategy (NSS) aims to offset losses by moving into high-value chips and attracting US foreign direct investment (FDI), the government may provide emergency grants for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to explore new markets," the economist added. Beyond immediate mitigation, Alvin urged Malaysia to convert tariff pressure into opportunity and highlighted the importance of adopting a "tech-for-market access" strategy, trading supply chain transparency for stable US tariffs on semiconductor inputs. 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