By Danial Dzulkifly
KUALA LUMPUR, March 12 — Gombak MP Dato’ Seri Amirudin Shari has urged the International Trade and Industry Ministry (Miti) to conduct acceleration programmes for local startups and companies that have the potential to boost the national economy.
He said there is a need for such a programme as Malaysia still lags behind in nurturing small and medium enterprises (SMEs), which hold the potential to generate high-impact jobs and spur advanced industries like semiconductor production, commonly known as integrated circuits (IC) manufacturing.
Miti can conduct acceleration programmes for SMEs at the national level to help them reach higher levels, as well as train engineers for advanced industries such as IC production.
“This is an area where we fall short. We don’t need a huge fund, like what Taiwan received from Japan, to enhance this semiconductor ecosystem, which has been operating in certain states here like Penang,” he said during Deputy International Trade and Industry Minister Liew Chin Tong’s winding up speech on the royal address in the Dewan Rakyat today.
It was previously reported that Taiwan’s IC manufacturing company TSMC had received an offer of up to USD10 billion in subsidies from the Japanese government for the firm to set up its manufacturing plant there.
Amirudin went on to urge the Federal government to empower the states via proper funding as they are directly dealing with local startups and SMEs.
As such, he said the state would fully understand the challenges faced by these companies.
“The ministry must provide space for states to identify and strengthen existing SMEs within its network because state investment agencies often interact directly with them. The same can also be said about the local councils.
“Certainly, the responsibility for compiling these lists (of companies) and identifying potentials should lie with the state. However, the ministry and related agencies must also allocate funds and resources because developing SMEs require substantial financial support, which may exceed the state’s capacity.
“Even in Selangor, I believe that our resources are only sufficient to assist SMEs on minor matters, but not enough to enhance their overall production, skills or networks,” he said.
In response, Liew expressed his agreement for the Federal government to come up with more initiatives to enhance the development of SMEs in the country through collaboration and promotional efforts.
This includes aligning investment efforts and policy implementation for the states of Selangor, Negeri Sembilan, Kuala Lumpur and Melaka to ensure better uniformity in creating a much-needed ecosystem to attract high-quality investment.
Earlier in his speech, Liew said the country is transitioning away from traditional manufacturing industries, which are labor-intensive with low-paying workforces, and is instead moving towards the creation of advanced industries such as IC manufacturing.
He noted that Malaysia has an edge in terms of IC design and packaging compared to wafer production or manufacturing.
This lines up with Selangor’s own plan to develop the semiconductor industry in the state.
State executive councillor for investment, trade and mobility Ng Sze Han had said on March 1 that this strategy will not only focus on semiconductor manufacturing but also include its design aspects.
