ISKANDAR PUTERI, Sept 25 — Invest Selangor Bhd, the state foreign and domestic direct investment promotion agency, is intensifying efforts to hold networking sessions with industry players to attract investors to the state.
Chief executive officer Datuk Hasan Azhari Idris said in the face of the current economic uncertainties due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the subsequent movement restrictions, the agency is focusing on promoting investments among industry players in the country.
“We share about the initiatives taken by the Selangor state government, especially the Selangor Business Hub (SBH), which provides a virtual networking platform for businesses to enable the business community to communicate virtually without the need for a physical presence,” he told Bernama after the “Selangor Initiatives and Opportunities” programme here, recently.
The one-day programme was in collaboration with the Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers (FMM) Johor, attended by 40 industry players under the auspices of the Johor Bahru Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JBCCCI).
Johor is the second state to host the programme after it was held in Sabah earlier this year, and the programme will be held in Penang on Sept 29.
Hasan Azhari said the SBH comprises three main components, led by the Invest Selangor Investment Promotion Programme — a portal that hosts webinars and virtual conferences organised by the agency, involving potential partners and investors across the region.
The second component is the Selangor International Business Summit — an online alternative to the Selangor International Business Annual Summit, comprising the Selangor International Expo, the Selangor Asean Business Conference, and the Selangor Smart City and Digital Economy Convention.
The third component is the Selangor Information Technology and E-commerce Council (Sitec) Virtual Hub, which helps the council to expand its reach to international audiences.
“Apart from SBH, we had also shared on the initiatives to develop the halal industry in Selangor. We also conduct classes to help entrepreneurs achieve halal certification.
“We also disclosed our efforts to improve the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Selangor, such as helping the community to get funding, helping entrepreneurs to move from the conventional to digital systems, especially in starting an online business either through the Lazada and Shopee e-commerce platforms,” he said.
Hasan Azhari added that the Selangor e-Bazaar Raya campaign with Shopee, held from May to June this year, helped 6,400 new entrepreneurs to sell their goods and services on the platform.
He said Selangor is an attractive business destination, as it has the required infrastructure, geographical location, human capital and economic strength.
The state recorded an economic growth rate of 6.7 per cent last year, he said.
“Selangor has a better industrial ecosystem compared with other states in the country.
“We have a vast transportation network, we produce about 66,000 graduates a year through more than 160 public and private institutions of higher learning, colleges and industrial training centres,” he said.
These factors, he said, will help Selangor to realise its vision to become a smart state in the Asean region by 2025.
— Bernama
