PETALING JAYA: Concerted efforts will be undertaken to increase the contribution of micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) to the economy, according to the 12th Malaysia Plan (12MP).
In this regard, the transformation of MSMEs into innovation-driven enterprises is crucial to increase their resilience and competitiveness.
Initiatives to accelerate the creation of high growth and innovative firms will include enhancement of targeted assistance for automation, digitalisation, artificial intelligence (AI) and other 4th Industrial Revolution (4IR) technologies.
Focus will also be given to strengthening the ecosystem for future industry start-ups by creating technology and digital entrepreneurial clusters. Financial assistance will also be streamlined to meet the specific needs of innovation-driven and high-tech start-ups, the report said.
Technology adoption and innovation will be promoted by increasing R&D uptake and strengthening research collaboration between MSMEs, industry experts and academia.
According to the report, a national MSMEs digitalisation roadmap will be introduced to drive the adoption of digitalisation.
A mechanism to assist and guide MSMEs in the digitalisation process will be strengthened, among others, via the Digital On-Boarding for Micro Businesses (DigitalNiaga), Digital Transformation Acceleration Programme (DTAP), and Warongku initiatives.
The Digital Compass will be enhanced to help assess MSMEs readiness and capabilities to adopt technology-based business processes and 4IR-related technologies. This will also include cyber health checks to assess the vulnerability of MSMEs to potential threats and attacks.
Outcome-based KPIs for all funds provided for digitalisation and ecommerce adoption will be established to track the effectiveness of the programmes.
A total of RM147.1bil was allocated by the government to assist MSMEs via the eight economic stimulus packages since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. Out of this total, more than RM20bil is dedicated to drive the digital and technological transformation agenda.
Besides these, the Vendor Development Programme will be expanded in creating more competent Bumiputera vendors among MSMEs.
Initiatives to develop more anchor companies through collaboration with government-linked companies and multinationals (MNCs) will be intensified in promoting an integrated supply chain and providing more business opportunities.
Other support programmes, such as certification, marketing and branding, packaging as well as product development will be enhanced to improve the capacity and capability of vendors in meeting industry requirements.
Measures to enhance market access and opportunities will be further expanded to assist MSMEs in increasing sales of goods and services domestically and internationally.
Government Procurement (GP) will be fully leveraged as a means to support MSMEs in the domestic market, instill business confidence, drive innovation, and stimulate the development of products for local content requirements.
In this regard, the 12MP said efforts will be accelerated to ensure local MSMEs, including manufacturers, to actively participate in GP.
Linkages with large firms, especially MNCs will be strengthened in enabling MSMEs to have access to a bigger market. In this regard, MNCs will be encouraged to use locally produced materials by MSMEs in their production supply chain.
For this purpose, the capacity and capability of MSMEs in producing products and services that comply with the global supply chain standards will be strengthened.
In ensuring policies and programmes implemented benefit the target groups, it said the categorisation of entrepreneurs, including social entrepreneurs and startups, will be reviewed to reflect the current needs and future landscape.
Startups will also be classified under technology and non-technology clusters to align with the current technological advancements and business models.
A corporate governance toolkit for MSMEs will be developed to improve business efficiency and performance through fair practices, good ethics and the right corporate and management culture.