KOTA KINABALU: Sabah’s Unduk Ngadau winner for this year, Maya Hejnowska (pic), has been appointed the state’s Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) products ambassador.

       The appointment was in conjunction with the ‘Buy Sabah Made Products’ campaign to be launched soon.

       Maya, 20, received her appointment letter in a simple ceremony on Tuesday (June 22) at the State Industrial Development Ministry office here, witnessed by Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Dr Joachim Gunsalam.

       Joachim, who is also State Industrial Development Minister, said his Ministry has collaborated with the Kadazandusun Cultural Association (KDCA) to appoint the Harvest Festival queen as the SME ambassador for a year.

       The new ambassador title also saw Maya receiving RM10,000 as she promotes Sabah SME products, including acting in a video clip to promote the campaign.

       In a statement after the event, Joachim said Maya will also be attending future exhibitions and expos in the state held by the ministry.

       The Buy Sabah Made Products campaign is aimed at assisting Sabah SME entrepreneurs in introducing their products to both domestic and international audiences.

       “The campaign hopes to assist our SME entrepreneurs to increase their sales which have been impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic,” said Joachim.

       He added that at present, over 4,000 Sabah SME products are in the market, with 2,340 products having registered with the Ministry’s e-dagang platform, GoBiz.