Sarawak Dyslexia Association moves into new premises

KUCHING: The Dyslexia Association of Sarawak has moved into a new purpose-built facility, ending years of space constraints that had forced it to turn away families seeking support for children with dyslexia.

Women, Early Childhood and Community Wellbeing Development Minister Datuk Seri Fatimah Abdullah said the association, which relocated to its new premises in September, had previously operated from just two classrooms, limiting its capacity to accommodate more students.

“These new premises were built with support from the Sarawak government,” she said at the Sarawak International Dyslexia and Learning Disability Conference 2026 at the Waterfront Hotel here on Thursday (Oct 15).

Fatimah said the association had played a significant role in supporting individuals with dyslexia, having assisted more than 500 children and adults, primarily Sarawakians, by 2019.

Tracing its development, she said the idea of establishing the association emerged in 2004 when a group of concerned individuals came together to address the needs of people with dyslexia.

A pro-tem committee was subsequently formed under the chairmanship of Dr Ong Puay Hoon, who later became the association’s first president.

The initiative also received the backing of the late Datuk Patinggi Dr Laila Taib, who became its first patron.

Fatimah, then serving as Minister in the Chief Minister’s Office, was appointed the association’s first adviser, a position she continues to hold.

The association was formally registered with the Registrar of Societies on April 10, 2007, and held its inaugural annual general meeting on Oct 27 that year.

It established its first Learning and Resource Centre in a rented shophouse at Lorong Kedandi, Tabuan Dusun, in March 2008, before enrolling its first five students in a three-month Dyslexia Intervention Programme that July.

As its operations expanded, the Sarawak government allocated a government quarter known as Banglo Kalaka, or Sri Meluan, at Lorong Maxwell 2 for use as its Learning and Resource Centre.

The association relocated to the premises on July 1, 2009, before the centre was officially launched on Oct 30 that year.

Fatimah expressed appreciation to the Sarawak government and all those who had contributed to the association’s growth, particularly in making its new building a reality.

“The new premises stand because people in this state decided that these children matter,” she said.