Grab opportunities offered by govt, Tan urges SMEs
Published on: Thursday, May 28, 2015
Kota Kinabalu: Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) owners in the State are urged to grab opportunities offered by the government through its various programmes geared towards assisting and facilitating SME entrepreneurs in the country."SME entrepreneurs must be alert and quick to take their breaks whenever the government offers programmes that could help them catapult their businesses to the next level," said Industrial Development Minister Datuk Raymond Tan at the opening of the SMEs Week, here, Wednesday.His speech was read by the ministry's Permanent Secretary Datuk Hashim Paijan.
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Tan, who is Deputy Chief Minister, revealed that last year the government spent RM10 billion to help about 600,000 SMEs in the country through 162 programmes."This year, the government is expected to spend RM11.3 billion on about 500,000 SMEs through 163 programmes. The programmes are divided into five main components, namely access to finance, training, innovation and technology, marketing and infrastructure," he said.At the same time, he urged small business owners who are operating out of their homes to obtain trading licences and permits from the local authorities so that it would be easier for the government to reach out to them and provide any sort of aid and incentive."Unless they do this formally, it would be very difficult for the government to channel any information to them, much less help them," he said.
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Four years after SMEs Week was first initiated, Tan said there had been significant progress in terms of SME contribution and participation in the business and economic sector in the State.He said the number had been steadily increasing as well as their business profiles and many SMEs in the State have successfully produced and marketed new and quality products, not only domestically but also internationally.
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It is also notable, he said, that Bumiputeras continue to be the main players in the industry."Although our achievement is something that we can be proud of, I believe that there is still room for improvement, especially if we want to be on par with SMEs in the peninsula and in the Asean region."I believe we are still growing and the government wishes to see that this sector will become more competitive in the future."The government had played its part in helping SMEs in the country. I believe one cannot find any other government in Asean or even Asia that had shown the same level of commitment in helping SMEs as shown by our government," he said.During the event, more than 300 participants took part in the half-day seminar where a total of six papers on government assistance and new business opportunities were presented.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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