KUALA LUMPUR: Young entrepreneurs in Malaysia particularly those involved in the small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are urged to take advantage of the Asean business community to contribute towards the country’s economic growth.
Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said Malaysia’s entrepreneurial ecosystem was one of the most developed in the world with the support of more than 20 government financial agencies.
“The loans sometimes were given out without collateral and given out on the back of ideas (from the young entrepreneurs).
“We want to ensure that if you have the passion, the idea, the drive and the ability to take risk, the capital is there for you,” he said in his speech at the opening of the Asean Young Entrepreneurs Carnival 2016 (AYEC 2016) here yesterday.
Khairy said Asean presented enormous opportunities for Malaysian young entrepreneurs as the region’s export contribution was minimal despite constituting a larger number of employment.
“We must ensure that value created by businesses will increase and we need to do that by making sure they are able to harness the opportunities presented by the Asean Economic Community (AEC),” he added.
The government recently set up a cabinet committee chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi to help spur the development of the young entrepreneurs ecosystem.
Khairy said his Ministry as well as the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI) were working together under the National SME Development Council to ensure that the young entrepreneurs who generated employment and industries trailblazers would be given priority by the government and have better access to capital and government procurement.
The inaugural AYEC 2016 is a collaborative effort between Matrade and the Malaysian Association of Asean Young Entrepreneurs (MAAYE).
The two-day event, which will end tomorrow, is supported by MITI.
Two memoranda of understanding were also signed during the opening event, namely the Incubator Programme for Asean Export Champions and Jeli Parliament Entrepreneurs Group (JPEG) for Asean Export Champions Programme.
The Incubator Programme for Asean Export Champions is a collaboration between Matrade and MAAYE to create Asean export champions among Malaysian young entrepreneurs, while the JPEG programme involves MAAYE and Jeli-based entrepreneurs. — Bernama