Norkiah cutting a ribbon to officially open the building. Looking on are Goh (third left), Masnah (second left), Ahmad Lai (second right) and others.
MIRI: The newly completed Sarawak Federation of Women Institutes (SFWI) Bekenu branch building at Kampung Dagang in Bekenu will stimulate entrepreneurship among women in the district.
Sibuti MP Ahmad Lai Bujang pointed out it would help the women in Bekenu to further explore their business capacity in cottage industry.
“We are grateful that with the wholehearted support from SFWI and the desire of women here particular members to have their own building, the dream has come true,” he told reporters after the official opening of the building by SFWI patron Toh Puan Datuk Patinggi (Dr) Norkiah at Kampung Dagang here yesterday.
Ahmad Lai said the RM250,000 building took about three years to be completed.
SFWI honorary advisor Dato Ursula Goh thanked Ahmad Lai and the elected representatives in the area for helping them to fulfil the dream.
“We have plans for the (SFWI) members in Bekenu. Our plan is basically to focus on uplifting their economic standard as well as their social standing,” she said.
For future plans, she stated they planned to develop the empty space at the back of the building for food processing.
In addition to that, the federation will go to the ground to identify the kind of cottage industry demanded by the women in the district, she added.
Among those present at the official opening were Assistant Minister of Resource Planning Datuk Mohd Naroden Majais’s wife, Datin Masnah Ahmad, Ahmad Lai’s wife, Dayang Lily Datuk Abang Indeh and SFWI Miri/Bintulu area exco representative Datin Laila Ibrahim.
Meanwhile, SFWI Bekenu has about 300 members.