KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 12 — The Ministry of Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives (Medac) will extend the “Penjana Komuniti@SME Bank” programme nationwide next year and increase the number of participants to 150 B40 entrepreneurs from various backgrounds.
Minister Datuk Seri Dr Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar said the decision, which was based on the potential of the pilot project, involves 20 selected B40 micro-entrepreneurs from People’s Housing Project (PPR) in Taman Medan, Petaling Jaya and Jelatek PPR here.
He said the “Penjana Komuniti@SME Bank” programme, which is a corporate responsibility programme and an initiative under the Ministry of Finance (MoF), was aimed at stimulating economic activities for the B40 micro-entrepreneurs who were affected by Covid-19.
“This initiative is one of the government’s efforts in empowering the B40 (bottom 40 per cent of household income) group in order for them to continue to be viable, especially during the Covid-19 crisis,” he said in a statement today.
Wan Junaidi said the participants were given training and guidance on how to grow their existing business using online platforms and how to use social media in a more structured and effective way.
“This programme is also one of the 27 new programmes and policies under Pemacu which is driven by Medac,” he said in a statement today.
Pemacu is an initiative that connects the functions of all agencies under Medac so that monitoring can be carried out efficiently and capacity and competencies collaborations can be maximized.
Meanwhile, SME Bank group president and chief executive officer Aria Putera Ismail said in the quest to ensure the objectives of the programme are achieved, SME Bank has appointed the Centre for Entrepreneur Development & Research Sdn Bhd (Cedar), a wholly-owned subsidiary of SME Bank, as the training provider and Yayasan Sukarelawan Siswa (YSS) as the project manager.
The first training session for the programme was held from September 15-October 6, 2020 while that of the second group will be completed by year-end, he said, adding that Cedar will also monitor the development and business progress of the participants throughout the programme.
“This hands-on training programme includes learning about Facebook Ads, Instagram Advertising and Website & Google Ads.
“In addition, the participants are also introduced to Yezza application to facilitate their business management. Yezza is a business platform using the WhatsApp application for a systematic selling of products or services,” he added.
Additionally, SME Bank also provides special training for tenants at the SME Bank Entrepreneur Premises Complex (EPC), namely the SME Bank Business Strategic Series (SBSS), which is also conducted by Cedar.
This free training programme is a platform for the entrepreneurs, who operate at the 454 factory lots in 26 SME Bank EPC, to increase their knowledge and skills in doing business and expand it to a higher level.
— Bernama
