COVID-19: Create special action plan to help women, families - Shahrizat

KUALA LUMPUR: As women are among the vulnerable groups affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, a special action plan for women and families during the pandemic needs to be developed immediately.

The proposal was voiced by former women, family and community development minister Tan Sri Shahrizat Jalil, who said that a special comprehensive plan was important for the survival of women who are the backbone of the family and often stuck between balancing career and family needs.

Taking a lesson from the opinion piece written by US Vice President Kamala Harris entitled "Opinion: Kamala Harris: The exodus of women from the workforce is a national emergency", posted via @washingtonpost on Feb 13, Shahrizat said that the initiatives to help women in this country need to be more focused.

"Women are among those who need help during this pandemic. Do we have a specific plan for women in this time of pandemic In terms of their economy, health and their families?

"They need systematic help in economic, health, employment and other issues to survive this pandemic," said former Wanita UMNO chief in a post on her Instagram account yesterday.

Harris, in her article, wrote that the mass exodus of women from the US workforce is a national emergency and it needed to be treated as one.

The US first woman vice president said that since the start of the pandemic in the US, about 2.5 million women have lost their jobs or dropped out of the workforce, where a lack of affordable childcare is a critical factor, with many working mothers forced to make an unfair choice, to look after their children.

"I'm glad this emergency is getting the attention it deserves. We must sound the alarm bells for working mothers, for families, and for our economy. Because our economy cannot fully recover unless women can fully participate. This is a national crisis - and we need to act now," said Harris.

Meanwhile, in a separate development, former education minister Dr Maszlee Malik, in a statement suggested several matters, including those relating to home-based teaching and learning (PdPR), and asking the Ministry of Communications and Multimedia to play a proactive role with the Ministry of Education (MOE) on internet access issues.

He said that the Ministry of Higher Education should work with the MOE to publish educational materials for broadcasting purposes, and use the services of experts in institutions of higher learning.

Maszlee also said that the Ministry of Family, Women and Community Development must be proactively mobilised to look after the welfare and education of children, especially those with special needs.

"The Ministry of National Unity, on the other hand, is responsible for ensuring that Orang Asli education can be managed well through the Department of Orang Asli Development (Jakoa)," he added.

-- BERNAMA