HAJIJI said 124 Sabah Small and Medium Industries (SMI) entrepreneurs took part in 18 international trade expos in 2025, recording potential sales of RM95.9 million, an increase of 37.12 per cent compared to RM60.4 million the previous year.
“This achievement proves that Sabah-made products have the quality, uniqueness and competitiveness to penetrate global markets.
“That is why Jom Malaysia should be seen as a platform capable of opening up more opportunities for local entrepreneurs to grow and expand their markets,” he said.
To further strengthen the State’s entrepreneurial ecosystem, he said the Sabah Government through SMJ 2.0 was carrying out various initiatives including the SME-UP Assistance Programme led by the Department of Industrial Development and Research with an allocation of RM15 million to develop 600 MSMEs.
He said the Sabah Ready-to-Eat (RTE) Programme had also been introduced to help commercialise local food products through development grants, retort machine assistance and halal certification support to boost product marketability.
Hajiji said both initiatives complemented the aspirations of Jom Malaysia in developing competitive entrepreneurs and products ready to be marketed domestically and internationally.
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He said the tourism sector also played an important role in realising the local to global aspiration, particularly ahead of Visit Malaysia Year 2026 and Visit Sabah Year 2027.
He said Sabah recorded 3.79 million visitor arrivals with tourism receipts of RM8.74 billion last year, reflecting the sector’s potential as a catalyst for promoting local products and services.
“Every festival, expo and promotional programme not only encourages the purchase of local products but also serves as a space to introduce Sabah’s identity to visitors from within and outside the country.
“When tourists enjoy local food, buy handicrafts, use services or bring home Sabah-made products, they become ambassadors introducing the Sabah brand to the international stage. This is the true ‘local to global’ aspiration we want to achieve together,” he said.
He suggested that the Ministry of Domestic Trade and Cost of Living together with the State Government consider holding Jom Malaysia in more strategic destinations across
Sabah in conjunction with Visit Sabah Year 2027, to widen the programme’s reach to local entrepreneurs and strengthen the promotion of Sabah products to domestic and international tourists.
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