KUCHING: Dayak Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI) expects to see more members apply for soft loans allocated to Tabung Ekonomi Kumpulan Usaha Niaga (Tekun) next year.
Its executive secretary Terence Temenggong Jayang said based on response at a recent seminar in Lawas, DCCI members showed keen interest in wanting to enjoy the facilities from Tekun which was allocated funds under Budget 2014.
“Tekun Nasional has a RM50 million allocation for soft loans to finance Bumiputera entrepreneurs in any type of business activity with amounts ranging from RM5,000 to RM100,000.
“It is interesting to note that in Lawas, according to Tekun Lawas branch manager Awangku Bahar, there are now 3,000 entrepreneurs enjoying facilities from Tekun and more than 50 of them comprised Lun Bawang entrepreneurs.
“This is most encouraging for the community. Following the keen interest shown during the seminar, more applications are expected to be submitted to Tekun Lawas next year,” he said yesterday.
More than 50 participants comprised Lun Bawang entrepreneurs from Long Tuma, Trusan and other villages around Lawas town attended the DCCI Seminar on Financing Facilities namely loans and grants provided by government agencies. The speakers invited were from Tekun, Amanah Ikhtiar Malaysia (AIM) and SME Corporation (SME Corp).
Among the participants were TK Lasong Singa from Kampung Trusan and Tadam Singa, a successful local entrepreneur and manager of a 1,000 acre oil palm plantation called Estate Bidang Trusan.
The seminar was declared open by DCCI secretary general Libat Langub, who came on behalf of deputy president Tan Sri Dato Sri Celestine Ujang Jilan.
Also present were Terence, DCCI capacity building manager Mabel Salin, and DCCI membership and activities executive Marylyn Juttie. Terence also said the participants were informed that SMECorp has RM10 million allocations from Budget 2014 for its Bumiputera Enterprise Enhancement Programme (BEEP) for Sarawak Bumiputera small and medium enterprises (SMEs). Licenced companies with at least 51 per cent Bumiputera equity and operating for more than six months can apply and qualify for loans and grants.
The speaker SMECorp Sarawak assistant director Azrul Fahmi also told the participants that relevant sectors qualify for financing include services, manufacturing, upgrading and packaging, machinery required for marketing, production and expansion of business premises. Interest charged on these facilities are 4 percent per annum which is much lower than those charged by commercial banks.
As for AIM, its Lawas branch manager told the seminar that AIM has an allocation of RM300 million in Budget 2014, and it gives out small loans ranging from RM3,000 to RM100,000 to Bumiputera women for various small business activities in rural areas, targetting 500,000 participants in the country.
The concept promulgated by AIM to qualify for loans to individuals is based on the concept of joint equity and joint partnership model, where a group of five individuals need to team up and work together to ensure loans are paid weekly until full settlement. Subsequently, fresh loans can be considered after the full settlement of the earlier loans.