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SME

90% of SME digitalization initiative applications approved

By Deepika Tiwari --
Wednesday, 25 Nov, 2020

Till date total 5,634 applications from small and medium enterprises (SMEs) have been received for the SME Business Digitalisation Grant initiative, said Communications and Multimedia Minister Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah. From which RM14.6 million matching grants had been approved to 5,087 eligible SMEs, which involved 90% of the total number of applications received, he said.

“The government through the Ministry of Finance has appointed Bank Simpanan Nasional (BSN) to channel the grant while SME Bank and Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) are its strategic partners.

"MDEC's role in this process is only at the early stage in providing advisory services in the field of digitalisation as well as providing a list of Technology Solutions Providers (TSP) to be selected by SMEs before they submit applications to BSN," he said

At the same time, Saifuddin said BSN, SME Bank and MDEC are currently in the process of creating a digital application platform that is expected to be launched in the first quarter of 2021.

"With the availability of digital application facility, all parties, SMEs and TSPs can find out the status of applications online. "This will indirectly address the issue of delay in processing this matching grant application, besides it is expected to shorten the approval period to only three days compared to 14 days previously," he added.

90% of SME digitalization initiative applications approved. Till date total 5,634 applications from small and medium enterprises (SMEs) have been received for the SME Business Digitalisation Grant initiative, said Communications and Multimedia Minister Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah. From which RM14.6 million matching grants had been approved to 5,087 eligible SMEs, which involved 90% of the total number of applications received, he said.

“The government through the Ministry of Finance has appointed Bank Simpanan Nasional (BSN) to channel the grant while SME Bank and Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) are its strategic partners.

"MDEC's role in this process is only at the early stage in providing advisory services in the field of digitalisation as well as providing a list of Technology Solutions Providers (TSP) to be selected by SMEs before they submit applications to BSN," he said

At the same time, Saifuddin said BSN, SME Bank and MDEC are currently in the process of creating a digital application platform that is expected to be launched in the first quarter of 2021.

"With the availability of digital application facility, all parties, SMEs and TSPs can find out the status of applications online. "This will indirectly address the issue of delay in processing this matching grant application, besides it is expected to shorten the approval period to only three days compared to 14 days previously," he added.